Manning MacDonald

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Manning MacDonald, born September 18, 1942 in Sydney, Nova Scotia, is a Liberal Canadian politician who represented Cape Breton South in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from May 25, 1993 to May 29, 2013. Before entering provincial politics, he was the mayor of Sydney from 1978 to 1993.

He won the Cape Breton South riding in 1993, defeating Peter Mancini and Norm Ferguson. He started as a backbench MLA until June 27, 1996, when he became Minister of Labour. In July 1997, after Russell MacLellan became premier, MacDonald was named Minister of Economic Development and Tourism and also took over as Liberal House Leader, a role he held until January 2012. He was re-elected in 1998 by a comfortable margin and continued in Economic Development and Tourism while taking on several other cabinet responsibilities, including the Priorities and Planning Secretariat, Sysco, and the Petroleum Directorate.

The Liberals lost power in 1999, but MacDonald was re-elected in his riding. He later served in opposition after the 1999 election and was re-elected again in 2003, 2006, and 2009. He announced his retirement on January 6, 2012. In May 2013, he faced scrutiny for a four-week holiday during the spring session of the legislature and resigned his seat on May 29, 2013, the day before a vote on docking his pay.