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IQALUIT - Akulliq's new MLA was sworn in to Nunavut's third legislative assembly last week, nearly five months after the territory's general election.

Kugaaruk's John Ningark filled the empty seat, having defeated incumbent Steve Mapsalak of Repulse Bay after two byelections in the riding, the first resulting in a judicial recount.

John Ningark was sworn in as MLA for Akulliq before the legislative assembly reconvened on March 17. - Carolyn Sloan/NNSL photo

"I'm very happy," said the new MLA last Tuesday. "In order to be a leader sometimes you have to go with the flow, so that's what I did."

Nonetheless, Akulliq's lengthy quest for representation could be attributed to the fact that the riding's two communities are in different regions, Ningark said.

In making his first member's statement, he told the assembly that he would be raising the issue with the membership after canvassing his constituents on the matter.

"With respect to Repulse Bay, it's in the Kivalliq region, and Kugaaruk is not part of that region," said Ningark. "This is something that may not have been debated vigorously enough in the Nunavut Electoral Boundary Commission report findings."

Ningark joined his fellow members for the second sitting of the assembly, which reconvened in Iqaluit on March 17. After the session, he planned to travel to Repulse Bay and then back to his own community of Kugaaruk to meet with his constituents.

"When you become a politician, a public figure, you go to the people and ask what they want. That's what I'm going to be doing," he said. "Coming from a small community, I have a pretty good idea of what the community needs, but in order for me to know what is going on in Repulse Bay, I will have to go there and see what the people want. That's what I'll be doing in the next while."

This is Ningark's first time serving in Nunavut's legislative assembly, though he represented the former Natilikmiot riding from 1989 to 1999, when Nunavut was still part of the Northwest Territories.

"It's been a while since I've been in territorial politics as a public figure, as MLA," he said. "There will be some committees that I will be interested (in), but I'm going to take time to get to know the system."

During the sitting of the legislative assembly March 17, the membership welcomed its newest addition.

"I would like to congratulate John Ningark for being the newest 19th member here and hopefully your battle won't be as hard this time around as it was to get here," said Fred Schell, MLA for South Baffin.

"I would also like to thank John Ningark," said Quttiktuq MLA Ron Elliott.

"He makes it look very easy. We have been around since October and I know I'm nervous, and he's just standing there and he talks so eloquently to us, so I'll try and catch up with him."