predecessor successor birth_place party office birth_date term_start residence article_title term_end name occupation
richard l. weldon bernie boudreau joan massey jamie muir liverpool , nova scotia liberal mla for dartmouth east minister of health 25 may 1935 1984 june 9 , 1997 dartmouth , nova scotia jim smith -lrb- nova scotia politician -rrb-
 2003 august 16 , 1999 jim smith doctor
jim smith -lrb- nova scotia politician -rrb-

james alexander smith -lrb- born may 25 , 1935 -rrb- is a canadian politician .
he represented the electoral district of dartmouth east in the nova scotia house of assembly from 1984 to 2003 .
he was a member of the nova scotia liberal party .
smith was born in liverpool , nova scotia in 1935 , and grew up in port mouton .
smith graduated with a medical degree from dalhousie university in 1964 .
he practiced family medicine in dartmouth , nova scotia for almost 30 years .
smith first attempted to enter provincial politics in the 1981 election , but was defeated by progressive conservative incumbent richard l. weldon .
smith ran again in the 1984 election , defeating weldon by 903 votes to win the dartmouth east riding .
one of only six liberals elected , smith spent the early years of his political career in opposition .
he was re-elected in the 1988 election , winning the seat by 253 votes .
smith was re-elected in the 1993 election , defeating cabinet minister gwen haliburton by almost 2,500 votes .
following the election , smith would get to sit in government for the first time , as the liberals under john savage won a majority government .
on june 11 , 1993 , smith was appointed to the executive council of nova scotia as minister of community services .
on june 27 , 1996 , savage shuffled his cabinet , with smith being named minister of housing and municipal affairs .
on june 6 , 1997 , savage announced that smith would take over as minister of health on june 9 , when bernie boudreau resigns from cabinet to run for the liberal leadership .
smith remained as minister of health when russell maclellan took over as premier on july 18 , 1997 .
smith was re-elected in the 1998 election , and retained the health portfolio , but was also named minister of justice .
in december 1998 , smith was replaced as minister of justice , as maclellan shuffled his cabinet to reduce the heavy workload of some of the cabinet .
smith was re-elelcted by 265 votes in the 1999 election , but the liberals were defeated by john hamm 's progressive conservatives .
smith served in opposition for one term , announcing on may 2 , 2003 , that he would not seek re-election in the next election .
