He represented the electoral district of Cape Breton Centre in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1963 to 1974, and 1981 to 1988.
[5] Laffin was defeated when he ran for re-election in 1974,[6] losing his seat to New Democrat James "Buddy" MacEachern.
[7] In the 1981 election, Laffin returned to politics and defeated MacEachern to regain the seat.
[8][9] Following the election, he was appointed to the Executive Council of Nova Scotia as Minister of Housing.
[13] On July 24, 1988, Laffin resigned from cabinet and announced that he would not seek re-election in the 1988 election.