Northwest Territories to hold election Tuesday after delay by wildfires

YELLOWKNIFE – Residents of the Northwest Territories are heading to the polls Tuesday, more than a month after the election was originally set to be held.

The election had been scheduled for Oct. 3 but was delayed because of a wildfire season that saw about 70 per cent of the territory’s population under evacuation order.

Legislature members voted unanimously to delay the election during a late August session in the town of Inuvik, as the capital of Yellowknife and its roughly 20,000 residents were under an evacuation order at the time.

Premier Caroline Cochrane announced in September that she wasn’t running for re-election.

Sixteen seats are being contested, while three candidates have been acclaimed.

After the vote, the 19 legislature members are to elect a premier, six other cabinet members and a Speaker from their own ranks.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 13, 2023.

Note to readers: This is a corrected story. A previous version said elections were to be held Monday.