Celebrating Women in Municipal Politics

Not until 1934 was the first woman elected to municipal government in the Halifax region, and until 2020 for there to be as many women as men on Council. The following is a chronological list of women elected to office in the City of Halifax (1841-1996), County of Halifax (1880-1996), Town/City of Dartmouth (1873-1996), Town of Bedford (1979-1996), and the amalgamated Halifax Regional Municipality (1996-present). This chronology is based on the Municipal Archives' list of elected officials for the Halifax region.

1930s and 1940s

Black and white photograph of a group of councillors, 1940s

Halifax County Council including Mary King, ca. 1940s. Photograph by Allen Fraser. HMA 312-1F-010

Catherine MacLean Sullivan - First female Alderman, City of Halifax, Ward 3, 1934-1940

Mary Theresa King (later King‐Myers) - First female Councillor, County of Halifax, District 27; Canada's first female councillor in a rural municipality, 1938-1950

Portrait of Abbie Lane

Portrait of Abbie Lane from photographic collage of Halifax City Council & staff, 1955, 102-1P.002

1950s

Abbie Lane - Alderman, Ward 2, City of Halifax, 1951-1965; first female Deputy Mayor, 1954-1955

Gladys W. Guptill - First female Councillor, Town of Dartmouth, Ward 3, 1952-1960; Deputy Mayor, 1957-1958

Mary Theresa King‐Myers - Councillor, District 27, County of Halifax, 1956-1958

Eileen Stubbs - Councillor, District 14, County of Halifax, 1958-1960

1960s

Eileen Stubbs - Councillor, Ward 6, Town of Dartmouth, 1960-1960; Alderman, Ward 6, City of Dartmouth, 1961‐1971; Deputy Mayor, 1967-1968

Mary Theresa King-Myers - Councillor, District 6, County of Halifax, 1961-1967

Norma Mosher - Councillor, District 23, County of Halifax, 1964-1967

Silvia F. Hudson - Councillor, District 6, County of Halifax, 1967-1973

Margaret B. Snair - Councillor, District 7, County of Halifax, 1969-1973

1970s

Colour photograph of a woman wearing the robes and chain of office for the City of Dartmouth

Dartmouth Mayor Eileen Stubbs, [197-?]. Dartmouth Heritage Museum Collection, 1983.058.025

Margaret Stanbury - Alderman, Ward 6, City of Halifax, 1971-1977; Deputy Mayor, 1974-1975

Silvia F. Hudson - Councillor, District 14, County of Halifax, 1973-1976

Eileen Stubbs - First female Mayor, City of Dartmouth, 1973-1977

Brenda M. Shannon - Alderman, Ward 2, City of Halifax, 1974-1980; Deputy Mayor, 1977-1978

Elizabeth A. Lawrence - Councillor, District 3, County of Halifax, 1975-1981

Francene J. Cosman - Councillor, District 17, County of Halifax, 1976-1979

Colour photograph of a woman

County Warden Elizabeth Lawrence, [197?]. Posted with permission of Sherman Hines. HMA 312-1F-28.

Barbara Hart - Alderman, Ward 5, City of Dartmouth, 1976-1983; Deputy Mayor, 1982-1983

Helena D. Poirier - Councillor, District 2 (Timberlea), County of Halifax, 1976-1991

Nancy Wooden - Alderman, Ward 7, City of Halifax, 1977-1982

Doris Crawford Maley - Alderman, Ward 1, City of Halifax, 1977-1982; Deputy Mayor, 1981-1982

Francene J. Cosman - First Mayor, Town of Bedford, 1979-1982

Elizabeth A. Lawrence Salton - First female Warden, County of Halifax, 1979-1982

Lois Wiseman - Councillor, District 20, County of Halifax, 1979-1988; Deputy Warden, 1985-1988

1980s

Phyllis Doyle - First female Councillor, Town of Bedford, 1982-1985

Jean Beeler - Alderman, Ward 2, City of Dartmouth, 1983-1986

Eileen Stubbs - Alderman, Ward 5, City of Dartmouth, 1983-1986

Deborah Grant - Alderman, Ward 1, City of Halifax, 1985-1989

Moira Leiper Ducharme - Alderman, Ward 10, City of Halifax, 1985-1991; Deputy Mayor, 1989-1990

Coloured photograph of a woman wearing a dark blue robe and the mayor's chain of office

Bedford's First Mayor Francene Cosman, [1979] (103-15.008)

Gloria McCluskey - Alderman, Ward 4, City of Dartmouth, 1986-1992; Deputy Mayor, 1991-1992

Peggy Draper - Councillor, Town of Bedford, 1988-1991

Marie O'Malley - Alderman, Ward 5, City of Halifax, 1988-1994; Deputy Mayor, 1990-1991

Anne Cosgrove - Councillor, Town of Bedford, 1988-1996

Judy Smiley - Councillor, District 11, County of Halifax, 1988-1996

A woman raises her right hand to swear on the Bible held by herself and other hands.

County Councillor Helena D. Poirier, being sworn in on November 2, 1982. HMA 312-92A-001-008.5

1990s

Anne Cosgrove - Councillor, Town of Bedford, 1990-1991; Deputy Mayor, 1991-1992

Moira Leiper Ducharme - First female Mayor, City of Halifax, 1991-1994

Mary Ann Crowley - Alderman, Ward 11, City of Halifax, 1991-1996

Gloria McCluskey - Second female Mayor, City of Dartmouth, 1992-1996

Barbara Joan Pryde - Councillor, Town of Bedford, 1994-1996

Kate Carmichael - Alderman, Ward 2, City of Halifax, 1994-1996

Colour photograph of a woman standing beside a chair wearing the Mayor's chain of office for the City of Halifax

Halifax Mayor Moira Ducharme, 1992. Posted with permission of Jarvis of Halifax. HMA 102-5-1-87.1

Sue Edmonds - Alderman, Ward 6, City of Dartmouth, 1994-1994

Colleen Hache - Councillor, District 19, County of Halifax, 1994-1996

Theresa Scratch - Councillor, District 20, County of Halifax, 1994-1996

Lynn Turner - Councillor, District 23, County of Halifax, 1994-1996

Sheila Fougere - Councillor, HRM District 14 Connaught-Quinpool, 1998-2008

Sue M. Uteck - Councillor, HRM District 13 Northwest Arm-South End, 1999-2012; Deputy Mayor, 2006-2007

Colour photograph of a woman standing beside a chair wearing the mayor's chain of office for the City of Dartmouth

Dartmouth Mayor Gloria McCluskey, [199-]. Dartmouth Heritage Museum collection, 1996.013.001.011

Colour photograph of a group of councillors

HRM Council, including Sue Uteck (red blazer) and Sheila Fougere (pink top),1999. HMA 400-5-1-11C

2000s

Diana Whalen - Councillor, HRM District 16 Rockingham-Wentworth, 2000-2003

Dawn Marie Sloane - Councillor, HRM District 12 Halifax Downtown, 2000-2012

Linda Diane Mosher - Councillor, HRM District 17 Purcell's Cove-Armdale, 2000-2012

Krista Snow - Councillor, HRM District 2 Waverly-Fall River-Beaver Bank, 2003-2008

Debbie Hum - Councillor, HRM District 16 Rockingham-Wentworth, 2003-2012

Becky Kent - Councillor, HRM District 8 Woodside-Eastern Passage, 2004-2008

Mary Wile - Councillor, HRM District 10 Clayton Park West, 2004-2012

Gloria McCluskey - Councillor, HRM District 5 Dartmouth Centre, 2004-2012

Jackie Barkhouse - Councillor, HRM District 8 Woodside-Eastern Passage, 2007-2012

Jennifer Watts - Councillor, HRM District 14 Connaught-Quinpool, 2008-2012

Lorelei Nicoll - Councillor, HRM District 4 Cole Harbour, 2008-2012

2010s

Lorelei Nicoll - Councillor, HRM District 4 Cole Harbour-Westphal, 2012-2020; Deputy Mayor, 2014-2015

Gloria McCluskey - Councillor, HRM District 5 Dartmouth Centre, 2012-2016

Jennifer Watts - Councillor HRM District 8 Peninsula North, 2012-2016

Linda Mosher - Councillor HRM District 9 Peninsula West-Armdale, 2012-2016

Lisa Blackburn - Councillor, HRM District 14 Upper/Middle Sackville-Beaver Bank, 2016-present;  Deputy Mayor, 2019-2020

2020s

Women achieved gender parity on the Halifax Regional Council elected in October 2020 and then in 2024 a female-majority Council was elected. 

Colour photograph of female councillors standing on the interior stairs of Halifax City Hall.

2020:T. Purdy, P. Lovelace, P. Cuttell, L. Blackburn. FR: K.Morse, C.D. Gammon, I. Stoddard, B. Kent

Cathy Deagle Gammon - Councillor, HRM District 1 Waverley, Fall River and Musquodoboit Valley, 2020-present; Deputy Mayor, 2023-2024

Becky Kent - Councillor, HRM District 3 Dartmouth South-Eastern Passage, 2020-present

Trish Purdy - Councillor, HRM District 4 Cole Harbour Westphal Cherry Brook, 2020-present

Kathryn Morse - Councillor, HRM District 10 Halifax-Bedford Basin, 2020-present

Patty Cuttell - Councillor, HRM District 11 Spryfield-Sambro Loop-Prospect Road, 2020-present   

Iona Stoddard - Councillor, HRM District 12 Timberlea - Beechville - Clayton Park - Wedgewood, 2020-2024

Pam Lovelace - Councillor, HRM District 13 Hammonds Plains-St. Margaret's, 2020-2024;  Deputy Mayor, 2021-2022

Lisa Blackburn - Councillor, HRM District 14 Upper/Middle Sackville-Beaver Bank, 2020-2024;  Deputy Mayor, 2019-2020

Laura White - Councillor, HRM District 7 Peninsula South-Downtown, 2024-present

Virginia Hinch - Councillor, HRM District 8 Halifax Peninsula North, 2024-present

Janet Steele - Councillor, HRM District 12 Timberlea-Beechville-Clayton Park-Wedgewood, 2024-present

Nancy Hartling- Councillor, HRM District 13 Prospect Road-St. Margarets, 2024-present