However, Higgs has gone further than his Conservative counterparts in the region. In doing so, he has burned many bridges.
His relationship with the health-care sector is fraught. Emergency rooms have overflowed at times with residents dying in waiting rooms.
When it was reported a woman was unable to get access to a rape kit, Higgs blamed the nurses for “showing a lack of compassion.” He has also limited abortion access within the province.
Higgs has an equally contentious relationship with Indigenous Peoples. In 2021, New Brunswick directed government employees to halt territorial acknowledgements because the province is involved in a series of legal actions and land claims initiated by First Nations.
The province also tore up tax-sharing agreements with the Wolastoqey Nation, which Higgs argued were “unfair.”