Gary Burrill


Gary Clayton Burrill is a Canadian politician and the leader of the Nova Scotia New Democratic Party.

Early life and education

Born in Woodstock, New Brunswick, his father was a United Church minister. In 1978, he graduated from Queen's University with a Masters of Arts in History. Burrill taught sociology at Mount Saint Vincent University, Saint Mary's University, and the Maritime School of Social Work. He later graduated with a Masters of Divinity from Harvard University, and in 1992 he was ordained as a minister in the United Church of Canada and became a minister in Upper Musquodoboit.

Political career

He was elected to the Nova Scotia House of Assembly in the 2009 provincial election. He represented the electoral district of Colchester-Musquodoboit Valley as a member of the New Democratic Party until his defeat in the 2013 election.
Burrill was the ministerial assistant for the Minister of Community Services, and chair of the Veteran's Affairs Committee of the Nova Scotia Legislature, in the government of Darrell Dexter.
On June 11, 2015, Burrill announced he was running for the leadership of the Nova Scotia New Democratic Party. On February 27, 2016, Burrill was elected as leader of the Party, winning on the second counting of ballots in the instant-runoff voting system used for this election.
In July 2016, Burrill announced that he would seek the NDP nomination in Halifax Chebucto for the 2017 election. He defeated Joachim Stroink in the election to return to the legislature. Under Burril's leadership in the 2017 election, the NDP took 7 seats, the same number the party received on election night in 2013 but two more than it held going into the election.