Longtime Progressive Conservative politician Rob Lantz has been sworn in as Prince Edward Island’s 34th premier Friday, pledging to lead the province with “honesty and integrity.”
Friday’s ceremony at Fanningbank, the residence of P.E.I.’s lieutenant-governor, came less than 24 hours after Dennis King announced he was resigning as premier and stepping away from politics.
Lt.-Gov. Wassim Salamoun confirmed during the ceremony that he had asked Lantz, until now the education and early years minister in King’s cabinet, to form a government.
During his remarks after being sworn in, Lantz talked about his roundabout route to becoming leader of the province. He was the P.E.I. Progressive Conservative leader in 2015, but failed to win his own seat in that year’s provincial election, won by Wade MacLauchlan’s Liberals.
“I never imagined myself back here, but here I am. Life is full of surprises,” Lantz said Friday.
“That experience, while challenging, taught me about the importance of resilience, perseverance and service. Every step along the way has reinforced my commitment to making a real difference for the people of Prince Edward Island.”
Lantz earned the unanimous support of his fellow PC MLAs to become the governing party’s interim leader, and thus premier, after King resigned Thursday.
At a surprise media conference that day, King said he had decided to leave politics, saying his family had long taken second billing to his job and he felt it was time to hand the title to someone who could take the provincial government further.
He also resigned as the MLA for Brackley-Hunter River, meaning the provincial legislature is down two members after the recent departure of Natalie Jameson to run federally for the Conservatives. Asked Thursday whether he had federal aspirations himself, King replied that he was never seeking elected office again.
King was not at Friday’s swearing-in ceremony for Lantz. He had told CBC News: Compass host Louise Martin in an interview Thursday that he would be in Dieppe, N.B., to attend a hockey tournament in which his son was playing.
King’s resignation came just days before the spring legislative sitting is due to begin, with the threat of American tariffs looming over the Island’s resource-based economy.
It’s not yet clear whether the spring sitting will begin Tuesday as scheduled.
His departure means that all three parties with seats in the P.E.I. Legislature now find themselves headed by interim leaders.
The Official Opposition Liberals, helmed by Hal Perry, have a leadership convention scheduled for May 2026. The Greens, led for now by Karla Bernard, recently moved up their leadership vote to June 7 of this year.
Under P.E.I.’s fixed election date system, the next provincial general election is scheduled for Monday, Oct. 4, 2027.
Dennis King announced Thursday that he was stepping down as P.E.I.’s premier and walking away from politics entirely. A few hours after the announcement, he joined CBC News: Compass host Louise Martin to talk about his decision and his plans for the future.
Before his first stint in provincial politics, Lantz represented his ward on Charlottetown city council for two terms between 2006 and 2014.
In the April 2023 general election, he once again became the MLA for District 13, Charlottetown-Brighton, where he grew up and where he still lives with his wife, Kelly. He has since served in King’s cabinet, first as housing minister before being appointed to his current role as education minister in October 2024.
Government succeeds when it works hand in hand with the people it serves. People are the heart of this province.— P.E.I. Premier Rob Lantz
The new premier became emotional when speaking of his family on Friday, saying he had a paragraph of his speech written about them but scrapped it because he knew he wouldn’t be able to get through it.
“But you know I love you,” he told them.
Lantz pledged to work for Prince Edward Island residents, and referenced a often-used phrase of his predecessor.
“Government succeeds when it works hand in hand with the people it serves. People are the heart of this province, and Dennis King always said: ‘It’s about people,'” he said.
“I’ll listen, I’ll learn and I will lead with honesty and integrity. We have a strong foundation and together we’ll build on it. We don’t intend to skip a beat.”
