‘Not kings’: Could Nunavut switch to party-style politics? – Nunatsiaq News

Nov 20, 2025

As territory’s new government takes shape, some argue Nunavut should move on from consensus government

As John Main was making his pitch Tuesday to become Nunavut’s next premier, he said something one Carleton University researcher believes defines what the territory’s politics is about.

“Premiers are not kings,” Main, the MLA for Arviat North-Whale Cove, said during the leadership forum where he was selected premier over David Akeeagok, who represents Iqaluit-Niaqunnguu.

In Nunavut’s consensus-style government — where there are no political parties — that statement is truer than in most other provinces and territories, said Jerald Sabin, associate professor at Carleton University in Ottawa.

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