Acadians look for electoral district 'to maintain our language and culture'

Call it P.E.I.'s own distinct society: the chair of the community council in Wellington, P.E.I.,AlcideBernard, says he hopes the P.E.I. Electoral Boundaries Commission maintains a distinct district for Acadian Islanders.

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The commission is reviewing the province's boundaries in advance of the next provincial election, expected in 2019.

"It's a continuous struggle to have our rights recognized and to have the services that we require to be able to maintain our language and culture," Bernard said, noting P.E.I.'s francophone population is not increasing.

"It's important to be able to keep that voice."

'Always have been represented'

In the last review, the smaller district of Evangeline-Miscouche was created to represent a Francophone region of the province, which Bernard said was important for French-speaking Islanders.

"This is the only area in P.E.I. when there is a greater possibility to elect an Acadian to the House, and we always have been represented in the house," he said.

"We think it is important to maintain that."

Rural areas of P.E.I. including Evangeline-Miscouche have lost voters since the last time electoral boundaries were reviewed, and Bernard worries western P.E.I. could lose one of its rural districts.

The Electoral Boundaries Commission will hold a public consultation meeting in the area March 7 at the Evangeline School in Wellington. See the meeting schedule here.

The deadline for input is April 5 and the commission plans to deliver its final report and recommendations to the legislature during the spring 2017 sitting.

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