With a second term in office secured and Parliament sitting once again, Nunavut MP Lori Idlout is prepared to focus heavily on Arctic sovereignty and security, and how those issues tie into the daily lives of Nunavummiut.
鈥淚t鈥檚 hard for Nunavummiut to participate in protecting the Arctic when they live in overcrowded houses or go to school in poor conditions. I want to make sure we鈥檙e removing those barriers so more people can get involved,鈥� she said.
鈥淚鈥檓 here to work for all Nunavummiut, even those who didn鈥檛 vote for me,鈥� she added. 鈥淚鈥檝e overcome a lot of challenges and I will keep working hard to ensure better health, wellness and opportunities for our people.鈥�
Idlout's status as MP was subject to a validation process under Elections Canada. Although Idlout, representing the NDP, was ahead by 77 votes on election night, that lead dropped to 41 over Liberal Kilikvak Kabloona after a review corrected a double-entry error in one of the communities. Even with the tighter result, Elections Canada confirmed Idlout鈥檚 victory, confirming her role as the territory鈥檚 voice in Ottawa.
Idlout said getting official confirmation came as a relief, even though it took a week longer than expected.
Comparing this election to her first successful campaign in 2021, she noticed some positive changes. One of the biggest was better access to election information in Inuktitut, which hadn鈥檛 been widely available before. Providing materials in Inuktitut helped voters who prefer to communicate in their language better understand the election, Idlout told Nunavut News.
She also worked on boosting her social media presence this time around 鈥� including joining TikTok live 鈥� to better connect with younger voters across Nunavut鈥檚 many remote communities.
Reflecting on her first term, Idlout spoke of the challenges faced by Nunavummiut, including overcrowded housing, poor infrastructure and barriers to education and economic opportunity.
鈥淧eople here really care about each other, but they need more support,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e been neglected for too long, and I want to keep fighting to get Nunavut the investments it deserves.鈥�
