Green Party announces leadership contest to replace Coon

Long-serving environmentalist never got beyond the electoral breakthrough of 2018

Article content The Green Party of New Brunswick has launched its leadership contest to replace David Coon, who is relinquishing duties after captaining the ship for 14 years. On Tuesday, Geneviève MacRae, the Green’s executive director, announced the steps to choose the small opposition party’s next leader ahead of the 2028 provincial election. The contest will begin with applications opening on Aug. 4.

Party members will elect the new leader through a ranked-ballot vote. “This leadership race is an exciting opportunity for our party,” MacRae said in a press release. “We’re looking forward to welcoming contestants who are passionate about New Brunswick and ready to help grow our movement.”

Coon, 69, called it quits June 24, saying at a news conference it was time to “freshen things up.” The veteran environmentalist said he wanted to give a new leader plenty of runway before the next provincial election, scheduled in a little over two years from now. Coon took the Green movement to new heights in New Brunswick but stalled during the last provincial election that the Liberals convincingly won.

After serving for four years as the lone Green MLA in the 49-seat legislature, his party had a breakthrough in 2018, when three of its candidates were elected as MLAs, a feat repeated in 2020. In the last election, however, the party went down to two seats, and its percentage of the popular vote also dropped, from over 15 per cent in 2020 to just under 14 per cent in 2024. The Green Party says it wants members from every region of New Brunswick to take part in the leadership race, whether by seeking the leadership, volunteering on campaigns, or voting for the party’s next leader.

To oversee the contest, the party’s provincial council has established a special committee, chaired by long-time party member David Wagner of Fredericton. “We have established clear rules for the leadership contest to provide opportunities for prospective leaders to highlight their Green values and their vision for New Brunswick,” said Wagner, who in his day job is a mathematics education professor at the University of New Brunswick. “These rules respect the prospective contestants and the needs of current and new Green Party members to identify and elect the leader who represents the diverse people of New Brunswick.”

Candidates have from Aug. 4 to Sept. 12 to submit their applications. After vetting, the list of registered contestants will be announced on Sept. 28. The release stated that New Brunswickers must become Green Party members by Nov. 21 to be eligible to vote in the leadership election.

The new leader will be crowned at a leadership convention in Fredericton on Dec. 5. Coon is staying on as leader of the party until his successor is chosen. He will also keep serving as MLA for Fredericton-Lincoln.