It looks like the new provincial government won’t be sworn in by the end of this week.
According to the House of Assembly, there are several things that must happen in order for the election results to become final.
There must be the official count, which happened on October 17 – then 12 days must pass for the return of the writs of election. Then, the official results must be published, which is expected to happen on Friday.
That means Friday is the earliest date on which MHAs could be sworn in, brining an end to the caretaker mode government has been operating under since mid-September.
Meanwhile, it has been two weeks since election day and there hasn’t been much public activity since that time.
Premier-designate Tony Wakeham did media interviews the day immediately following the election but, other than a written statement released last week, he has not made any public appearances or been available for interviews.
His team indicates that he is busy with meetings related to the transition of power.
As for the Liberals, it has been radio silence since election night.
Outgoing Premier John Hogan has not made any public comment since his concession speech, after which he did not take questions from the media. All of the Liberal Party social media accounts have gone silent as well.
(Lieutenant Governor Joan Marie J. Aylward/Facebook)
Meanwhile, Lieutenant Governor Joan Marie Aylward has formally invited Premier-designate Tony Wakeham to form a government.
In a post to social media, Aylward says she met with Wakeham at Government House yesterday, and that a swearing-in ceremony will take place “in due course.”
