Angela Simmonds

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Angela Simmonds
MLA
Angela Simmonds.jpg
Member of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly
for Preston
Assumed office
August 17, 2021
Preceded byRiding Established
Personal details
Political party Nova Scotia Liberal Party
ResidenceNorth Preston, Nova Scotia
Alma materDalhousie University
OccupationLawyer, Poltician
WebsiteNova Scotia Legislature Website: https://nslegislature.ca/members/profiles/angela-simmonds

Angela Simmonds is a Canadian politician, who was elected to the Nova Scotia House of Assembly in the 2021 Nova Scotia general election.[1] She represents the riding of Preston as a member of the Nova Scotia Liberal Party. Prior to Simmonds election, she was a lawyer, social justice advocate, and executive director of the Land Titles Initiative.

Early life and education[]

Simmonds grew up in Cherrybrook, Nova Scotia and graduated from Dalhousie Law School in 2017.

Personal life[]

She lives in North Preston with her husband, Dean, who is a superintendent with the Halifax Regional Police, and they have three children.[2]

Land titles initiative[]

In 2014, Simmonds authored a document named: "This Land is Our Land: African Nova Scotian Voices from the Preston Area Speak Up". This document talked about how the African Nova Scotian communities in the Preston areas continue to face ongoing concerns regarding the expropriation of land, clarity of land titles and education regarding land ownership and inheritance. The challenges that Simmonds wrote about highlighted that the challenges in these communities stem from a history fraught with racism, oppression and inequity. In the document Simmonds referenced that today, fewer instances of overt racism occur and the problems are more systemic, however more work needs to be done.[3]

Following the publication of: "This Land is Our Land: African Nova Scotian Voices from the Preston Area Speak Up", Simmonds continued her advocacy for land titles to be granted to those residing on unregistered land. Due to her committment on resolving the issue, Simmonds was named executive director of the Land Titles Initiative on March 5, 2021, by the Office of African Nova Scotian Affairs.[4] Due to Simmonds' election in August, 2021, she had to step aside from the role as she was now the MLA for Preston.[5]

Political career[]

Simmonds was one of four Black Canadians elected to the Nova Scotia legislature in 2021.[1] On September 24, 2021, Simmonds was elected Deputy Speaker of the House of Assembly, which makes Simmonds the first Africian Nova Scotian speaker in the province's history.[6] Simmonds is a member of the Law Amendments Committee. She is also a member of the House of Assembly Management Commission.[7]

Currently Simmonds is the Justice Critic within the Nova Scotia Liberal Caucus[8]

On October 29, 2021, the House of Assembly voted to condemn a Justice Ministry staff member who was later fired after making racist comments against Simmonds on social media.[9]

2022 Liberal Leadership Contest[]

On February 4, 2022, Simmonds launched her campaign for leader of the Nova Scotia Liberal Party following Iain Rankin's announcement that he would be stepping down. She was the first person to declare their candidacy for Leader of the Nova Scotia Liberal Party[10]

Simmonds' leadership campaign slogan is: "New Energy for Nova Scotians".

Campaign website: www.angelafornovascotia.ca

Angela.png

Bills introduced[]

Assembly Act Title Date
Assembly 64, Session 1 Dismantling Racism and Hate Act[11] October 13, 2021

Electoral Record[]

2021 Nova Scotia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Angela Simmonds 2,226 43.38 -5.66
Progressive Conservative Archy Beals 1,472 28.69 +6.00
New Democratic Colter C.C. Simmonds 1,433 27.93 +4.36
Total valid votes 5,131 99.21
Total rejected ballots 41 0.79
Turnout 5,172 46.78
Eligible voters 11,055
Liberal notional hold Swing -5.83
Source: Elections Nova Scotia[12]

References[]

  1. ^ a b "Record number of Black MLAs elected to Nova Scotia Legislature". CBC News Nova Scotia, August 18, 2021.
  2. ^ 2017 Convocation profile: Angela Simmonds Dalhousie University
  3. ^ Simmonds, A. (2014, August 19). THIS LAND IS OUR LAND: African Nova Scotian Voices from the Preston Area Speak Up. Retrieved from https://nsbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/This-land-is-our-land.pdf
  4. ^ Iain, Rankin (March 5, 2021). "Lawyer and community leader Angela Simmonds has been named Executive Director of the Land Titles Initiative to lead this important work". twitter.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. ^ "Land Title Claims: The Struggle Continues". The Eastern Shore Cooperator. Retrieved 2022-02-14.
  6. ^ "https://twitter.com/cbcns/status/1441471990934777858". Twitter. Retrieved 2022-02-12. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  7. ^ david (2021-08-19). "Angela Simmonds". Nova Scotia Legislature. Retrieved 2022-02-12.
  8. ^ "Our Liberal MLA Critic Roles". Nova Scotia's Liberals. 2021-09-07. Retrieved 2022-02-12.
  9. ^ "'Racism is alive and well,' MLA Simmonds says after staffer fired for racist message about her | Saltwire".
  10. ^ I'm In., retrieved 2022-02-08
  11. ^ "Bills". Nova Scotia Legislature. Retrieved 2022-02-12.
  12. ^ "Provincial General Election 2021-08-17- Official Results". Elections Nova Scotia. Retrieved October 7, 2021.


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