The Chronicle Herald (Provincial)
Balser following in dad’s footsteps
In the riding of Digby-annapolis, a familiar family name is heading back to the provincial legislature.
With her election win, Digbyannapolis PC candidate Jill Balser is following in the footsteps of her father Gordon Balser, a former cabinet minister who served as PC MLA for this riding from 1998 until 2003.
With all 31 polls reporting, the election night unofficial vote count was: Jill Balser, PC: 2,636
Jimmy Macalpine, Liberal: 1,838 Michael Carty, NDP: 622 Jessica Walker, Green: 113 Tyler Ducharme, Atlantica: 80
Because of her family’s experience with provincial politics, Balser went into this election knowing the job of MLA is a big commitment. When her dad was MLA, and a cabinet minister, his job often kept him away from his family. But his absences never bothered Balser, she said during the campaign, because it was all about service to others.
“I remember as a kid, I never felt upset that he was away so much,” she had said in a media release during the campaign. “I always had the feeling my dad was doing something important for the community.”
She said while she didn’t know she would one day run for election as an MLA candidate, her father’s work had definitely influenced her decision to work in community development.
Balser began her career in the non-profit sector as the YREACH Immigration Settlement Member for the Fundy YMCA from 2014 to 2018. More recently she has been the project lead for the Inspiring Communities initiative for Turning the Tide.
She earned a BSC in environmental biology from the University of New Brunswick and a postgraduate diploma in sport and event marketing from George Brown College. She is working toward completing her master’s in community development.
During the campaign, she said the issues identified by residents were: health care, environment, employment and the economy.
Balser spent a lot of time on the campaign trail with her father pouring over voting data, driving the roads of the Digby-annapolis riding and meeting voters.
"I am honoured to think my daughter would consider following in my footsteps,” Gordon Balser said in a media release. “I believe she can pick things up where I left off and represent our area as they should be represented — responsibly and respectfully."