Lela Evans, MHA for Labrador's Torngat Mountains district, leaving PC party
CBC
Torngat Mountains MHA Lela Evans is leaving Newfoundland and Labrador's Progressive Conservative party to sit as an Independent in the provincial House of Assembly.
In a statement released on social media, Evans said she was no longer affiliated with the PC caucus as of 9 a.m. Monday.
"I have come to believe that the PC party is just not the right party for me and my district," Evans wrote. "I only ran as a MHA to help my district overcome the large gaps in services and infrastructure that continues to perpetuate the cycle of intergenerational trauma and disenfranchisement of my people."
Evans, an Inuk from northern Labrador, was first elected in 2019, beating out Liberal incumbent Randy Edmunds.
Since then she's been a vocal advocate for the region, often highlighting gaps in housing and services among Labrador's Inuit communities.
"I have come to believe that by stepping away from the PC Party I will be true to myself and what I promised the people of the District of Torngat Mountains, to fight to expose the long history of provincial government neglect in services and infrastructure."
The move raises the number of Independent MHAs sitting in the House to four — twice the number of NDP MHAs.
CBC has asked Evans, and the PC party for interviews.
The PC party told CBC News they will hold a media availability.
Read more from CBC Newfoundland and Labrador
This story is a collaboration between the Investigative Journalism Foundation and CBC Saskatchewan.
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