Gerald "Gerry" Fogarty is a former sportscaster and politician. He was the last Speaker of the House of Assembly of Nova Scotia to be appointed by the Premier rather than elected by his peers.
Before politics
Fogarty was a Halifax, Nova Scotia based sportscaster for the CBC Radio in the 1970s and 1980s and was known nationally for his on-air role during international hockey broadcasts carried on CBC.[1]
He was re-elected in the 1998 provincial election.[6][7] The election resulted in a minority government with the Liberals and NDP both winning 19 seats and the Progressive Conservatives winning 14. The choice of Speaker became a contentious issue with Liberal Premier Russell MacLellan supporting Fogarty to continue in the position while the Opposition parties demanded that the Speaker be elected by the legislature rather than appointed by the Premier which had been the practice until then. The Liberals agreed to an election[8] and the opposition Progressive Conservatives and New Democrats combined to defeat Fogarty and elect Conservative MLA Ron Russell as the new Speaker. Fogarty was also defeated in his attempt to win the position of Deputy Speaker by NDP MLA Don Chard.[9]
^"Nova Scotia elects new legislature". Toronto Star. May 26, 1993.
^"Social cost of casinos mainly left to chance High Stakes / Provincial governments hungry for money sweep aside concerns over the evils of gambling". Globe and Mail. May 13, 1994.