# 1956 Nova Scotia general election

The 1956 Nova Scotia general election was held on 30 October 1956 to elect members of the 46th House of Assembly of the Province of Nova Scotia, Canada. It was won by the Progressive Conservatives led by Robert Stanfield.
This was the first election the Liberals had fought after the death of their longtime charismatic leader, Angus L. Macdonald. Public Health Minister Harold Connolly became interim leader and premier following Macdonald's death in 1954, but was defeated at a leadership convention by Education Minister Henry Hicks. The convention exposed a sharp religious divide in the Liberal Party; Hicks was a Protestant and Connolly was a Catholic. Hicks was unable to heal the breach, and the Liberals were narrowly defeated, ending 23 years of Liberal rule.

## Results
### Results by party

| 24 | 18 | 1 |
| Progressive Conservative | Liberal | CCF |
Official results :
| Party | Party | Party leader | # of candidates | Seats | Seats | Seats | Seats | Popular vote | Popular vote | Popular vote |
| Party | Party | Party leader | # of candidates | 1953 | Dissolution | Elected | Change | # | % | Change (pp) |
| | Progressive Conservative | Robert Stanfield | 43 | 12 | 13 | 24 | +12 | 160,966 | 48.58% | +5.19% |
| | Liberal | Henry Hicks | 43 | 23 | 19 | 18 | -5 | 159,656 | 48.18% | -0.98% |
| | Co-operative Commonwealth | Michael James MacDonald | 11 | 2 | 2 | 1 | -1 | 9,832 | 3.00% | -3.85% |
| | Independent | Independent | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 812 | 0.25% | -0.35% |
| | Vacant | Vacant | Vacant | Vacant | 3 | | | | | |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 331,396 | 99.39% | -0.13% |
| Blank and invalid ballots | Blank and invalid ballots | Blank and invalid ballots | Blank and invalid ballots | Blank and invalid ballots | Blank and invalid ballots | Blank and invalid ballots | Blank and invalid ballots | 2,032 | 0.61% | +0.13% |
| Total | Total | Total | 98 | 37 | 37 | 43 | +6 | 333,428 | 100.00% | – |
| Registered voters / turnout | Registered voters / turnout | Registered voters / turnout | Registered voters / turnout | Registered voters / turnout | Registered voters / turnout | Registered voters / turnout | Registered voters / turnout | 367,474 | 79.83% | +4.04% |
Popular vote
PC
48.58%
Liberal
48.18%
CCF
3.00%
Independent
0.25% :
Seats summary
PC
55.81%
Liberal
41.86%
CCF
2.33% :

## Retiring incumbents
### Liberal

* Arthur W. MacKenzie, Guysborough
* James Edward Rutledge, Halifax Centre

## Nominated candidates

Legend bold denotes party leader † denotes an incumbent who is not running for re-election or was defeated in nomination contest

### Valley

| Electoral district | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Incumbent |
| Electoral district | Liberal | Liberal | PC | PC | CCF | CCF | Independent | Independent | Incumbent | Incumbent |
| Annapolis East | | Henry Hicks 2,830 54.68% | | Harry L. Ritcey 2,277 43.99% | | Murray Alton Bent 69 1.33% | | | Henry Hicks Annapolis |
| Annapolis West | | Peter M. Nicholson 2,523 53.84% | | Leigh Minard Marshall 2,163 46.16% | | | | | New riding |
| Clare | | Pierre E. Belliveau 2,046 52.60% | | J. Fred Gaudet 1,844 47.40% | | | | | Pierre E. Belliveau |
| Digby | | Victor Cardoza 2,559 48.65% | | Malcolm Stewart Leonard 2,701 51.35% | | | | | Victor Cardoza |
| Hants West | | Gerald Regan 3,300 47.69% | | George Henry Wilson 3,405 49.21% | | Ralph Loomer 214 3.09% | | | George Henry Wilson |
| Kings North | | Eric Balcom 3,054 50.37% | | George Arthur Boggs 3,009 49.63% | | | | | George Arthur Boggs Kings |
| Kings South | | MacIntosh MacLeod 1,594 40.23% | | Edward Haliburton 2,368 59.77% | | | | | Edward Haliburton Kings |
| Kings West | | C.D. McLean 2,985 49.97% | | Hiram Thomas 2,988 50.03% | | | | | New riding |

### South Shore

| Electoral district | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Incumbent |
| Electoral district | Liberal | Liberal | PC | PC | CCF | CCF | Independent | Independent | Incumbent | Incumbent |
| Lunenburg Centre | | Harold Uhlman 3,843 49.03% | | George O. Lohnes 3,995 50.97% | | | | | New riding |
| Lunenburg East | | Kirk S. Hennigar 1,579 45.56% | | R. Clifford Levy 1,887 54.44% | | | | | R. Clifford Levy Lunenburg |
| Lunenburg West | | Frederick E.L. Fowke 2,500 49.34% | | Harley J. Spence 2,567 50.66% | | | | | Harley J. Spence Lunenburg |
| Queens | | Merrill D. Rawding 2,974 49.23% | | W. S. Kennedy Jones 3,067 50.77% | | | | | W. S. Kennedy Jones |
| Shelburne | | Wilfred Dauphinee 3,086 48.05% | | James McKay Harding 3,337 51.95% | | | | | Wilfred Dauphinee |
| Yarmouth | | Eric Spinney 4,876 26.68% | | William Heartz Brown 4,007 21.93% | | | | | William Heartz Brown |
| Yarmouth | | Willard O'Brien 5,438 29.76% | | Raymond Z. Bourque 3,953 21.63% | | | | | Raymond Z. Bourque |

### Fundy-Northeast

| Electoral district | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Incumbent |
| Electoral district | Liberal | Liberal | PC | PC | CCF | CCF | Independent | Independent | Incumbent | Incumbent |
| Colchester | | Hector Hill 6,733 22.13% | | Robert Stanfield 8,476 27.86% | | Arnold Lynds 251 0.83% | | | Robert Stanfield |
| Colchester | | Margaret Norrie 6,664 21.91% | | George Isaac Smith 8,057 26.48% | | William Wright 240 0.79% | | | George Isaac Smith |
| Cumberland Centre | | Ralph F. Gilroy 1,803 39.70% | | Stephen T. Pyke 2,738 60.30% | | | | | Stephen T. Pyke |
| Cumberland East | | Walter Tremaine Purdy 4,303 49.41% | | James A. Langille 4,406 50.59% | | | | | James A. Langille |
| Cumberland West | | Allison T. Smith 2,618 54.82% | | William Harmon Wasson 2,158 45.18% | | | | | Allison T. Smith |
| Hants East | | Arthur W. MacKenzie 2,342 48.91% | | Ernest M. Ettinger 2,392 49.96% | | Malcolm F. Wheadon 130 1.13% | | | Vacant |

### Halifax/Dartmouth/Eastern Shore

| Electoral district | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Incumbent |
| Electoral district | Liberal | Liberal | PC | PC | CCF | CCF | Independent | Independent | Incumbent | Incumbent |
| Halifax Centre | | Gordon S. Cowan 5,642 52.91% | | David Milsom 5,022 47.09% | | | | | James Edward Rutledge† |
| Halifax County-Dartmouth | | Geoffrey W. Stevens 7,276 49.69% | | C.J. Creighton 6,811 46.51% | | Gerald Yetman 557 3.80% | | | New riding |
| Halifax East | | Duncan MacMillan 3,015 57.84% | | Reid Denton Sangster 2,198 42.16% | | | | | Geoffrey W. Stevens |
| Halifax North | | John E. Ahern 8,773 53.10% | | John A. O'Malley 7,748 46.90% | | | | | Vacant |
| Halifax Northwest | | Ronald Manning Fielding 3,763 50.40% | | S.E. Haverstock 3,573 47.86% | | L.C. Wilson 130 1.74% | | | New riding |
| Halifax South | | Edward F. Cragg 5,171 46.08% | | Richard Donahoe 6,051 53.92% | | | | | Richard Donahoe |
| Halifax West | | Charles H. Reardon 6,119 51.02% | | William J. Dalton 5,875 48.98% | | | | | Ronald Manning Fielding |

### Central Nova

| Electoral district | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Incumbent |
| Electoral district | Liberal | Liberal | PC | PC | CCF | CCF | Independent | Independent | Incumbent | Incumbent |
| Antigonish | | Colin H. Chisholm 2,669 48.06% | | William F. MacKinnon 2,884 51.94% | | | | | Colin H. Chisholm |
| Guysborough | | Alexander W. Cameron 3,177 51.34% | | R.S. Kaiser 3,011 48.66% | | | | | Arthur W. MacKenzie† |
| Pictou Centre | | A.T. Logan 5,303 48.46% | | Donald R. MacLeod 5,639 51.54% | | | | | Vacant |
| Pictou East | | John W. MacDonald 2,749 49.95% | | William A. MacLeod 2,754 50.05% | | | | | John W. MacDonald |
| Pictou West | | Stewart W. Proudfoot 2,556 49.15% | | Harvey Veniot 2,644 50.85% | | | | | Stewart W. Proudfoot |

### Cape Breton

| Electoral district | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Incumbent |
| Electoral district | Liberal | Liberal | PC | PC | CCF | CCF | Independent | Independent | Incumbent | Incumbent |
| Cape Breton Centre | | James P. McNeil 2,569 37.75% | | Charles P. Miller 1,289 18.94% | | Michael James MacDonald 2,948 43.31% | | | Michael James MacDonald |
| Cape Breton East | | C. Roy MacDonald 3,058 29.85% | | Layton Fergusson 4,324 42.20% | | Russell Cunningham 2,864 27.95% | | | Russell Cunningham |
| Cape Breton North | | Alexander O'Handley 4,465 42.31% | | John Michael Macdonald 6,088 57.69% | | | | | Alexander O'Handley |
| Cape Breton Nova | | Gus Brown 1,682 25.68% | | Percy Gaum 2,582 39.41% | | John A. Chisholm 1,475 22.52% | | Charles O'Connell 812 12.40% | New riding |
| Cape Breton South | | John Smith MacIvor 4,450 41.66% | | Donald C. MacNeil 5,101 47.76% | | Albert Martin 1,130 10.58% | | | John Smith MacIvor |
| Cape Breton West | | Malcolm A. Patterson 4,104 48.03% | | Edward Manson 4,440 51.97% | | | | | Malcolm A. Patterson |
| Inverness | | Joseph Clyde Nunn 4,415 27.80% | | Archie Neil Chisholm 3,673 23.13% | | | | | Joseph Clyde Nunn |
| Inverness | | Roderick MacLean 4,252 26.78% | | A.L. Davis 3,539 22.29% | | | | | Roderick MacLean |
| Richmond | | Earl Wallace Urquhart 2,636 53.82% | | William C. Boudreau 2,262 46.18% | | | | | Earl Wallace Urquhart |
| Victoria | | Carleton L. MacMillan 2,162 56.08% | | Leonard Walter Jones 1,693 43.92% | | | | | Carleton L. MacMillan |