# Pelly-Nisutlin

Pelly-Nisutlin is an electoral district which returns a member (known as an MLA) to the Legislative Assembly of the Yukon Territory in Canada. It was created in 2002 out of the districts of Faro and Ross River-Southern Lakes. The riding includes the communities of Teslin, Faro, Ross River, Little Salmon, and Johnsons Crossing. It encompasses the traditional territory of the Teslin Tlingit Council and the Ross River Dena Council of the Kaska Dena. Pelly-Nisutlin is bordered by the rural ridings of Mayo-Tatchun, Lake Laberge, Mount Lorne-Southern Lakes, and Watson Lake.

## Boundary commission controversy

Yukon electoral boundaries are examined by a commission every ten years to determine whether they should be adjusted. When Pelly-Nisutlin was created, it drew criticism from the Village of Teslin and the Teslin Tlingit Council, which argued that it should not be part of the same riding as Ross River and Faro, but rather Carcross and Tagish. There was concern not only that the MLA representing the district would face challenges representing and travelling to the communities of such a vast area (Faro is better accessed through Whitehorse), but also because there were greater commonalities between the Teslin Tlingit Council and the Carcross/Tagish First Nation.
Accordingly, the commission considered dismantling the electoral district and redistributing it into neighbouring districts, but rejected the option as it would create a greater imbalance between rural and urban seats in the Yukon. It also rejected the suggestion that Teslin form its own riding, since it was seen as too small in population. The report concluded: "while we acknowledge that the relationship of the Teslin area to the remainder of the electoral district is somewhat of an anomaly, we are unable to propose a justifiable solution other than to retain the district within its current boundaries."

## Members of the Legislative Assembly

| Assembly | Years | Member | Party |
| 31st | 2002–2006 | Dean Hassard | Yukon Party |
| 32nd | 2006–2011 | Marian Horne | Yukon Party |
| 33rd | 2011–2016 | Stacey Hassard | Yukon Party |
| 34th | 2016–2021 | Stacey Hassard | Yukon Party |
| 35th | 2021–Present | Stacey Hassard | Yukon Party |

## Election results
### 2021

vte2021 Yukon general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Yukon Party | Stacey Hassard | 362 | 50.77 | +8.41 |
| | New Democratic | George Bahm | 254 | 35.62 | +4.31 |
| | Liberal | Katherine Alexander | 97 | 13.60 | -9.39 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 713 |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | |
| Eligible voters | Eligible voters | Eligible voters | |
| | Yukon Party hold | Yukon Party hold | Swing | Swing | +2.05 |
| Source(s) "Unofficial Election Results 2021". Elections Yukon. Retrieved 24 April 2021. |||||||

### 2016

2016 Yukon general election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Yukon Party | Stacey Hassard | 280 | 42.3% | -7.1% |
| | NDP | Ken Hodgins | 207 | 31.2% | -0.8% |
| | Liberal | Carl Sidney | 152 | 23.0% | +9.9% |
| | Green | Frank de Jong | 22 | 3.3% | +3.3% |
| Total | Total | Total | 661 | 100.0% | – |

### 2011

2011 Yukon general election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Yukon Party | Stacey Hassard | 275 | 49.4% | +7.3% |
| | NDP | Carol Geddes | 178 | 32.0% | +6.5% |
| | Liberal | Carl Sidney | 73 | 13.1% | -12.3% |
| | Independent | Elvis Presley | 31 | 5.5% | -1.5% |
| Total | Total | Total | 557 | 100.0% | – |

### 2006

2006 Yukon general election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Yukon Party | Marian Horne | 241 | 42.1% | -4.3% |
| | NDP | Gwen Wally | 146 | 25.5% | +0.2% |
| | Liberal | Hammond Dick | 145 | 25.4% | -2.9% |
| | Independent | Elvis Aaron Presley ("Tagish" Elvis) | 40 | 7.0% | +7.0% |
| Total | Total | Total | 572 | 100.0% | – |

### 2002

2002 Yukon general election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Yukon Party | Dean Hassard | 297 | 46.4% | – |
| | Liberal | Jim McLachlan | 181 | 28.3% | – |
| | NDP | Buzz Burgess | 162 | 25.3% | – |
| Total | Total | Total | 640 | 100.0% | – |