Roseanne Skoke was the Liberal

Liberal Party of Canada

The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

 MP for the riding of Central Nova

Central Nova

Central Nova is a federal electoral district in Nova Scotia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1968 to 1997 and since 2004. Its population in 2001 was 73,722....

 from 1993 to 1997.
Central Nova

Central Nova

Central Nova is a federal electoral district in Nova Scotia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1968 to 1997 and since 2004. Its population in 2001 was 73,722....

 had been considered a safe Progressive Conservative

Progressive Conservative Party of Canada

The Progressive Conservative Party of Canada was a Canadian political party with a centre-right stance on economic issues and, after the 1970s, a centrist stance on social issues....

 riding, but its popular MP, Elmer MacKay

Elmer MacKay

Elmer MacIntosh MacKay, PC, QC is a retired Canadian politician.-Life and career:MacKay was born in Hopewell, Nova Scotia. He was first elected to the Canadian House of Commons as the Progressive Conservative Member of Parliament for Central Nova through a 1971 by-election...

, did not run for reelection in 1993. Skoke was elected in the gigantic Liberal landslide of that year as the party swept Nova Scotia and won all but one seat in the Atlantic provinces.

She was one of the more socially conservative

Social conservatism (Canada)

Social conservatism in Canada is a political attitude that is widespread, though not as pronounced as in the United States. It represents conservative positions on issues of family, sexuality and morality...

 members of the Liberal caucus, drawing great controversy for her remarks on homosexuality

Homosexuality

Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...

 in 1995, calling it "unnatural and immoral."

Due to redistribution

Redistricting

Redistricting is the process of drawing United States electoral district boundaries, often in response to population changes determined by the results of the decennial census. In 36 states, the state legislature has primary responsibility for creating a redistricting plan, in many cases subject to...

 prior to the 1997 federal election

Canadian federal election, 1997

The Canadian federal election of 1997 was held on June 2, 1997, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 36th Parliament of Canada. Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's Liberal Party of Canada won a second majority government...

, Skoke was forced to run against fellow Liberal MP Francis LeBlanc

Francis LeBlanc

Francis G. LeBlanc was a member of the Canadian House of Commons from 1988 to 1997.LeBlanc won the Cape Breton Highlands—Canso electoral district for the Liberal party in the 1988 and 1993 federal elections.The Cape Breton Highlands-Canso riding was redistributed for the 1997 federal election, in...

 for the Liberal nomination in her riding, which was renamed Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough

Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough

Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough was a federal electoral district in the province of Nova Scotia, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1997 to 2004....

. She was defeated due, in part, to controversies surrounding her. She refused to campaign for LeBlanc in the 1997 election leading some Liberals to blame her for LeBlanc's defeat at the hands of Peter MacKay

Peter MacKay

Peter Gordon MacKay, PC, QC, MP is a lawyer and politician from Nova Scotia, Canada. He is the Member of Parliament for Central Nova and currently serves as Minister of National Defence in the Cabinet of Canada....

.

Skoke attempted a political comeback by running for the leadership of the Nova Scotia Liberal Party later that year. She placed third.

In 1998, she unsuccessfully attempted to win a seat in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly by running against John Hamm

John Hamm

John Frederick Hamm, is a Canadian physician and politician and was the 25th Premier of Nova Scotia, Canada.Hamm, a graduate of the University of King's College and Dalhousie University, was a family doctor in his hometown of Stellarton, Nova Scotia, and the president of the Nova Scotia Medical...

 in Pictou Centre

Pictou Centre

Pictou Centre is a provincial electoral district in Nova Scotia, Canada, that elects one member of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly.-Members of the Legislative Assembly:This riding has elected the following Members of the Legislative Assembly:...

 during the provincial election

Nova Scotia general election, 1998

The 34th Nova Scotia general election was held on March 24, 1998 to elect members of the 57th House of Assembly of the Province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The Liberal party and the New Democratic Party tied in the seat count, with 19 each, while the Progressive Conservatives won 14 seats...

.