IQALUIT, Nunavut 鈥� Things to know about the Nunavut riding:
Worth watching: Leona Aglukkaq, a well-regarded minister in the territorial cabinet, won the seat for the Conservatives in 2008. Aglukkaq can claim some wins for her far-flung constituency and she had no trouble in the last election, but some wonder if funding announcements and favourable deals for Inuit organizations and the Nunavut government will translate into votes on the ground. Aglukkaq remains dogged by dissatisfaction over the Ottawa鈥檚 plan to subsidize food costs in the territory. Others say she鈥檚 more Harper鈥檚 representative to Inuit than the other way around, citing her support for a seismic testing program in the waters off Baffin Island that was strongly opposed by a wide variety of grassroots organizations.
Population: 31,910 people spread out over two million square kilometres. Just getting to as many of the territory鈥檚 25 communities as possible is a major issue for Nunavut politicians, to say nothing of the cost of travel.
Incumbent: Aglukkaq, who is currently the minister of environment and has also served as health minister.
Main challengers: The Liberals have nominated Hunter Tootoo, a former member of the territorial legislature who ran for the NDP federally in the 1990s. Jack Anawak, also a former legislature member as well as a former Liberal MP, is running for the NDP.
Election history: Nunavut had a long history of electing Liberal MPs until Aglukkaq captured it for the Tories.
Fun fact: Nunavut is the only jurisdiction in sa国际传媒 where the majority language is neither French nor English. The 2011 census reported that 70 per cent of Nunavummiut considered Inuktitut their mother tongue.
