CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. — Voters in District 9 will go to the polls on July 15.
The date of the deferred election for residents of Charlottetown-Hillsborough Park was announced by Premier Dennis King on Monday night.
The district has been without an MLA due to the tragic death of Green candidate Josh Underhay shortly before the April 23 provincial election. The vote in the district was delayed, as per regulations outlined in the Elections Act.
Both Liberal candidate Karen Lavers and NDP candidate Gordon Gay, who both ran during the general election, have stated they still intend to run in the deferred election.
Lavers, a long-time resident of the district, served for 25 years as an executive assistant to former mayor of Charlottetown Clifford Lee.
Gay is a custodian at Charlottetown Rural High School and resident of East Royalty. He is a past president of the Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 1775.
In May, the Greens nominated John Andrew as their candidate. Andrew, a resident of East Royalty, is a retired medical physicist and a director of the Hillsborough River Association.
Last week, the Progressive Conservatives nominated Natalie Jameson as the candidate in the district. Jameson previously worked in marketing, recruiting and human resources for the Calgary-based oil and gas company Obsidian Energy.
The governing PCs currently hold 12 of 27 seats in the legislature, with one of their ranks, Colin Lavie, currently acting as Speaker. The opposition Greens have eight seats and the Liberals have six.
According to Paul Alan, manager of election operations and communications with Elections P.E.I., advanced voting will take place on Saturday, July 6; Monday, July 8; and Friday, July 12 from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
The polls will be open on election day from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
