The surprise winner in the most recent provincial byelection has been formally sworn in as a member of the House of Assembly.
The PCs’ Jim McKenna garnered 58 per cent of the vote to handily take the Fogo Island-Cape Freels seat from the governing Liberals in mid-April.
It had been occupied since 2015 by popular MHA and cabinet minister Derrick Bragg, who died of cancer in January.
McKenna took the oath of office this morning as friends, family and colleagues looked on.
At a ceremony today in the House of Assembly Chamber, Jim McKenna was sworn in as the Member for District of Fogo Island – Cape Freels. pic.twitter.com/NTl73qiAJD
— NL Legislature (@NL_HOA) May 2, 2024
McKenna says he’s in the queue to ask his first question in the House this afternoon, adding he has several issues of concern on his agenda.
“At first I was a little bit leary about it and how I would react to it all but I’m getting quite comfortable in there now and I just can’t wait to get into the action,” he said.
“There’s a lot of big issues out there like health care, that’s a strong one, the fishery, carbon tax, the sugar tax, so those will be some of things we’ll be addressing as we move forward.”
McKenna says he has no inside knowledge yet on a potential position in the PC shadow cabinet.