Newfoundland Liberals pick up two more seats after byelection wins

Steve Crocker (facebook photo)

ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — Newfoundland and Labrador’s Opposition Liberals picked up two more seats in the legislature after a pair of byelection wins on Tuesday.

The unofficial results saw Liberal Steve Crocker easily take Trinity-Bay de Verde, picking up 3,074 votes, while Progressive Conservative Ron Johnson finished second with 1,363 votes and NDP candidate Tolson Rendell was a distant third with 254.

Liberal candidate Stelman Flynn captured Humber East with 2,263 votes, while Tory candidate Lary Wells picked up 1,454 and the NDPs Martin Ware registered 315.

The seats became vacant after the resignations of former Progressive Conservative cabinet ministers Charlene Johnson and Tom Marshall, who also served as premier this year before Paul Davis took on the role after becoming Tory leader in September.

Davis lost his first major test in a byelection earlier this month in the district of Conception Bay South when Liberal Rex Hillier defeated the Tory candidate.

There are now 29 Progressive Conservative members in the legislature, 16 Liberals, and three New Democrats.

The governing Tories have now lost seven straight byelections to the Liberals in the last 16 months.