The fight to keep Halifax red

The crowd bustled into the hotel on a chilly Halifax Saturday morning. Many wore buttons and carried pamphlets with a distinct shade of cherry red. Within minutes all 100 seats were filled, and at least two dozen people stood against the walls.

Liberal volunteers from way back in the 1980s to children years away from casting their first vote were all there to see four hopeful candidates give speeches. Only one would win the nomination and become the Liberal candidate for Halifax.

Shannon Miedema walked to the podium with a confident stride. Her short speech would make or break her chance of being chosen.

She came across as serious yet charming. And to captivate the audience, she delivered a personal message.

“The other night, when I was tucking my eight-year-old daughter, Margot, into bed, she told me that she wished she had a genie,” Miedema said with a smile. “She listed off her three wishes. The first was that she wished that everybody had a home. The second was that everybody had enough money. And the third was that her dog had a bunch of puppies.” The audience chuckled.

“I am committed,” Miedema said, “to fighting for her (first two) wishes and so much more. For her, for all my children, for your children, and for all of us.”

Four hours later, a quiet tension filled the room as a man took the podium to announce the voters’ decision. “I’m very happy,” he said, “to introduce the official Liberal candidate… Shannon Miedema.” The crowd erupted in applause and cheers. 

Clearly stunned, Miedema again rose to the podium and told the audience, “I’m shocked, so please forgive me.” She continued, “I will work so hard for this. I will not let you down.” 

In Halifax, as across this country, many people are worried about the future. 

Canadians are shocked by the trade war started by Donald Trump. His threats of annexing Canada, and a new Prime Minister taking office, contribute to the tension.

The day after Miedema became the Liberal candidate, then-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called a Halifax by-election for April 14. Incoming Prime Minister Mark Carney later sparked a general election to be held on April 28, so the by-election was folded into the national vote and was extended by two weeks. Miedema and the other Halifax party candidates suddenly needed to find the strength to attend events and knock on doors for eight – not just six – weeks straight.

Liberal support is not certain in Halifax, even after three consecutive successful campaigns. The 2021 election saw the NDP come just three percentage points away behind, a difference of fewer than 2,000 votes out of 51,000. 

If the Liberals win Halifax, it will be the first time they have achieved this measure of success in more than 75 years. The last time the Liberals won the seat four times in a row began in 1935 and ended in 1947.

Who is Shannon Miedema?

Originally from Ottawa, Miedema moved to Halifax in 2002. She received a Bachelor of Science Honours degree at Queen’s University, then a Master’s degree in environmental studies at Dalhousie University in 2004. Miedema also graduated from the University of King’s College in 2006 with a Bachelor of Journalism degree.

Miedema calls Halifax “the perfect city for me… It’s small enough that you see people you know when you’re out and about, and it’s big enough that you don’t know everybody.” Miedema said she enjoys Halifax’s rich culture and friendly people. She is married with three children. Camping, canoeing, and hiking are three of her favourite outdoor activities.

Miedema enjoys a variety of books and movies. A favourite novel is Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver. Set in rural Virginia, it focuses on childhood poverty and substance abuse. Miedema has too many favourite movies to name only one. She likes films that surprise her, that move beyond the usual clichés. “I like ones that make me cry. I like deep movies.”

One song that Miedema likes is Pink Pony Club by Chappell Roan. “My girls and I like to belt it out, and we sometimes do it in the car as we’re going door knocking.”

Learning curves

As the official Liberal candidate, Miedema instantly became a public figure. Voters would need to be met. Questions from strangers would need to be answered.

In autumn 2023, the number of Canadians who had trust in Parliament had fallen to 28 per cent. Miedema at first wondered what door-knocking would be like.  

“I was a little bit worried,” she said. “Like, will people be kind?”

Miedema recalls Catherine McKenna, a former Liberal federal cabinet minister, suffering harsh backlash before stepping down in 2021. “I would hope that people would be respectful in their interactions with everybody,” Miedema said. “Just be kind, be human. That’s my motto.”

Miedema is running for Parliament because of “this drive to create positive change.” Climate change is heavy on her mind. “I’ve always cared deeply for our planet, and it’s always really hurt my soul to see a lot of the destruction that humans have done.”

For the past 15 years Miedema has worked on environmental issues for HRM, rising to be Halifax’s Director of Environment and Climate Change. She helped develop HalifACT 2050, metro’s plan to achieve a net-zero economy by 2050. It has 46 calls to action, from creating environmentally sustainable building practices to protecting green areas.

She supports the Liberals because of the party’s deep experience. The party, Miedema said, has “a proven track record of making really important changes in our country.” The two centre-left parties in Canada, the NDP and Green Party, she points out, have never won enough seats to form a government.

She is hopeful about the future, despite Donald Trump’s threats to Canadian sovereignty. With this threat to our freedom, she said, “all of a sudden, we’re coming together instead of being driven apart.”

New home, strong support

In an abandoned Cash Money store near the Armdale Rotary, red signs with the white text SHANNON MIEDEMA are plastered on every window. This is where Miedema and her team meet daily to map out their mission to keep Halifax in Liberal Party hands. This is campaign headquarters.

Behind the opaque windows, Miedema’s team works like bees in a hive to make the space a proper campaign office. The smell of markers fill the air. Red streamers hang from the ceiling.

A table draped with a Canadian flag stands in the middle of the room. Dozens of Miedema pamphlets, Liberal Party buttons and Canada flag pins are laid atop.

On the wall, a makeshift banner in large red bubble letters reads TEAM SHANNON! Paper maple leaves adorned with the Liberal Party logo are taped to the banner.

At 2:30, Miedema waved for the audience’s attention. Silence came over the room. She thanked everyone for coming. She said she is still in shock that she is running for Parliament. “I still wake up, and I’m like” – she put her hand over her heart and gasped – “is this what I’m doing today? Okay, yeah. This is what I’m doing today.”

Miedema spoke about issues that voters care about most: housing, affordability, health care and the uncertainty of Canada’s future with Trump. Miedema’s speech made her opinion clear: Pierre Poilievre would not ease tensions with the United States. She said having Poilievre negotiating on behalf of Canada would be like “one schoolyard bully fighting with another.”

Views on the doorstep

On the side of a quiet street in Herring Cove, Miedema and several volunteers scanned their phones. They were searching through data showing which houses have a history of supporting Liberals.

The community, nestled along the coast 20 minutes outside downtown Halifax, has a population of about 2,000. The Liberals won here in 2021 by a large margin, almost 30 per cent.

Miedema and her team started walking. They would spend three hours on this Sunday afternoon knocking on doors.

One man was standing in his driveway washing his car. Miedema approached and introduced herself. When she mentioned the Liberals, the man turned away. “Absolutely no interest,” he snapped, walking into his garage.

Undeterred, Miedema moved on.

Many people did not answer. When this happened, Miedema would tuck a pamphlet into the crevasse of the door and swiftly move on. Half the people who did answer were unaware that an election was happening, let alone the key issues. Those who did respond mentioned two concerns: trade and Canadian sovereignty.

Miedema asked one undecided man what was top of mind for him. “Influencing trade in other countries,” the man replied, “and becoming less reliant on our neighbour, who’s not reliable.”

A woman standing outside a duplex, who was smoking a cigarette, said that her brother, a truck driver, supports Trump. They do not talk often. As for her vote, she was undecided.

A house near William King Elementary School had one of Miedema’s signs on its lawn. It was the only lawn sign seen all day. Miedema smiled as she approached the house. Knowing that here was a reliable supporter, she said, “We can skip this one.”

Later that day, Miedema talked to a man in a garage. “It’s a crazy world right now, eh?,” the man said, half-distracted by his work.

Miedema agreed warmly, then asked, “Do you know which way you will be voting?”

“Well, the house is split on that,” the man said. Miedema chuckled. He then said he was leaning towards the Conservatives. About Pierre Poilievre he said, “I just hear him talking, and I like what he’s saying.”

When Miedema mentioned Mark Carney, the new Liberal leader, the man, who was sitting down, looked up at her. “That’s the British guy who came back, right?”

Miedema replied firmly, “He’s not British.”

Miedema courteously suggested that the man visit her website, and handed him a pamphlet. She then walked down the gravel driveway. A team member was waiting at the bottom. Miedema’s facial expression was neutral.

“Undecided,” she said.

A surprise came at one of the final houses Miedema visited. When she asked a man if he knew who he would vote for, he gave an unexpected answer. “Honestly, I’m 60 years old, and I’ve never voted.”

“Oh, wow!” Miedema said. “Well,” she smiled compassionately, handing the man a pamphlet, “it’s an important election for Canada.”

About the author

Mark Pero

Mark Pero will graduate this spring with a Bachelor of Journalism degree from the University of King’s College.