Graydon Pelley resigns as leader of N.L. Alliance
Graydon Pelley, the leader of the N.L. Alliance since its inception as a political party in Newfoundland and Labrador, has announced his resignation from the party.
Party president Rudy Norman has also resigned alongside Pelley, according to a press release.
"I feel right now that after spending this number, this amount of time with the Alliance and going through the processes of the elections and different things in my own personal life, I felt that it was time to step aside and make way," Pelley said Tuesday.
The party was established in 2018 to "offer a better solution to Newfoundlanders and Labradorians than the same old party politics we've had for decades," according to the release.
Pelley, a recently retired school teacher, ran for a seat in the district of Mount Scio, losing to now Liberal MHA Sarah Stoodley. He was set to run in the district of Humber-Gros Morne in 2021 against Premier Andrew Furey before a health scare cancelled his campaign.
The party received 0.3 per cent of votes with five candidates in the 2021 election, and 2.4 per cent of the vote in the 2019 election with nine candidates.
Pelley said he's proud of his party's message, which called for a government that could address growing debt, cut spending and invest in small businesses. However, he said, it was often a challenge to effect change against established parties.
"Some of the ideas we put out there, we've already heard the established parties use some of them and try to move forward. But because of the way the party system is structured and the way it works, it seems difficult to get traction on some of these issues," he said.
"I believe that we have the message that the people of Newfoundland and Labrador want to hear. It's a message of change, but things didn't happen the way that we wanted. But I certainly have no regrets."
The party will remain registered with Elections Newfoundland and Labrador, Pelley said, but no one has stepped forward yet to become its next leader.
"If that happens, which I hope it does, I believe that the people of Newfoundland and Labrador will have a real viable option come in future elections," he said.
Pelley said he will remain involved in meetings on the future of the party but is looking forward to spending more time with his wife and family.
