Iain Rankin Zach Churchill The 2022 Nova Scotia Liberal Party leadership election took place on July 9, 2022[1] to elect a leader to replace Iain Rankin, who announced his intent to resign on January 5, 2022[4] after leading the party since 2021 and following the party's defeat in the 2021 Nova Scotia general election.

Iain Rankin announced that he would be resigning as leader on January 6, 2022, following the party's defeat in the 2021 general election and after consulting with his family.

In the McNeil and Rankin governments, he served as Minister of Health and Wellness, Natural Resources, Municipal Affairs, Communications Nova Scotia, and Education and Early Childhood Development.

Prior to announcing his candidacy, Churchill served as Deputy Leader of the Opposition as well as the critic for Health and Wellness and Health Care Professionals Recruitment.

Prior to announcing her candidacy, Simmonds has been serving as Deputy Speaker of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly and Opposition critic for Justice, Office of Equity and Anti-Racism Initiatives, Human Rights Commission and Accessibility Act.