Alexa McDonough, former NDP leader and trailblazer for women in politics, has died

Alexa McDonough, whose leadership of the Nova Scotia NDP in 1980 made her the first woman to lead a major political party in Canada, has died at the age of 77. 

McDonough, who also became the leader of the federal New Democratic Party in 1995, died at a care home in Halifax on Saturday after a lengthy struggle with Alzheimer's disease, her family said.

Known affectionately as simply Alexa, McDonough changed the face of politics in Canada and paved the way for other women to take their places at the pinnacles of political power. She was an inspiration to generations of New Democrats even after her retirement from politics 14 years ago.

The one-time social worker's passion for social justice carried her first to the Liberal Party of Nova Scotia, where she helped craft the party's social policy platform in the 1970 provincial election. But by 1974, disenchanted with the government of then-premier Gerald Regan, she found a new home in the NDP and never left.

McDonough never shied away from a challenge, failing twice to win a seat in the House of Commons before launching a bid for the leadership of the Nova Scotia NDP in 1980. The fact she didn't have a seat in the provincial House of Assembly, nor much support in Cape Breton, home to her leadership rivals, did not hinder her efforts.

She handily beat the two to become the first woman in Canada to lead a major political party.

Nearly a year later, in the provincial general election, she won a seat in the district of Halifax Chebucto, the party's first win on mainland Nova Scotia. It was a stunning upset, particularly for the Liberal incumbent who had laughed off the possibility of a McDonough win on election day.

For the next three years, she was a party of one and the only woman at Province House, home to Nova Scotia's legislative assembly.

The NDP didn't meet the two-seat threshold to trigger extra public funding or earn recognized party status, so McDonough had no time to savour her first political victory. She had to carry on the fight of holding the PC government of John Buchanan accountable with a skeleton staff and on a shoestring budget.

Although a lone voice during her first three years in the legislature, McDonough was steadfast in her criticism of the "old boys club," patronage and the way members of the House conducted themselves. She said she was subjected to sexist and misogynistic personal attacks as a result.

MLAs gave so little thought or consideration to women representatives that there wasn't even a separate washroom available for female MLAs at Province House. McDonough had to line up to use the public washroom one floor below the chamber while her male colleagues had access to a washroom just steps from their seats.

Although she enjoyed personal popularity, McDonough was not able to lead the party past the three-seat high-water mark it achieved in 1984 and again in the 1993 election. On Nov. 19, 1994, she resigned as leader with no definitive plans for her future.

"It's very, very important to me that you understand I do it with total joy, and with no sense of regret whatsoever," she told supporters the day she announced her decision.

John Holm, her caucus colleague who would take over as leader, paid tribute to her at a party event later that year: "I have, over the years, grown to not only love and respect Alexa, but to admire her tremendous courage and integrity."