Nova Scotia

Longtime Cape Breton Liberal MP Rodger Cuzner will not reoffer

Another longtime Liberal MP from Nova Scotia has announced he will not reoffer in this fall's federal election.

Rodger Cuzner, 63, was first elected in 2000 and won five more elections in succession

Cape Breton-Canso MP Rodger Cuzner announced he will not reoffer in this fall's federal election. (Norma Jean MacPhee/CBC)

Another longtime Liberal MP from Nova Scotia has announced he will not reoffer in this fall's federal election.

Rodger Cuzner, the MP for Cape Breton-Canso, made the announcement in his hometown of Glace Bay.

Cuzner, 63, was first elected in 2000 and won five more elections in succession. In 2015, he garnered 74 per cent of the popular vote in the riding.

He was known in the House of Commons for his humour and wit. But he told reporters on Friday morning he's stepping down because he's "tired and cranky."

Cuzner served as parliamentary secretary to former prime minister Jean Chretien in 2003. He has also served as chair of the Nova Scotia caucus and party whip.

He's perhaps best known on the Hill for his annual pre-Christmas rendition of "Twas the Night Before Christmas."

In February, Cuzner's longtime friend and colleague, Sydney-Victoria MP Mark Eyking, announced he will not run again this fall.