Newton LeGayet Mackay was a Canadian lawyer and political figure. He represented Cape Breton

Cape Breton (electoral district)

Cape Breton was a federal electoral district in Nova Scotia, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1867 to 1904. It was created as part of the British North America Act in 1867....

 in the Canadian House of Commons

Canadian House of Commons

The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...

 from 1872 to 1878 as a Conservative

Conservative Party of Canada (historical)

The Conservative Party of Canada has gone by a variety of names over the years since Canadian Confederation. Initially known as the "Liberal-Conservative Party", it dropped "Liberal" from its name in 1873, although many of its candidates continued to use this name.As a result of World War I and the...

 and then Liberal

Liberal Party of Canada

The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

 member.

He was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia

City of Halifax

Halifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...

, the son of William McKay, and was educated there. Mackay was called to the Nova Scotia bar in 1859 and named a Queen's Counsel

Queen's Counsel

Queen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...

 in 1872. He ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the Nova Scotia assembly in 1867 and 1871 before he was elected to the House of Commons. Mackay became a Liberal following the Pacific Scandal

Pacific Scandal

The Pacific Scandal was a political scandal in Canada involving allegations of bribes being accepted by the Conservative government in the attempts of private interests to influence the bidding for a national rail contract...

. After his defeat by Hugh McLeod

Hugh McLeod

Hugh McLeod was a Scottish-born lawyer and political figure in Nova Scotia, Canada. He represented Cape Breton in the Canadian House of Commons from 1878 to 1879 as a Liberal-Conservative member....

 in 1878, he was an unsuccessful candidate in each subsequent federal election until his death in 1886 in Sydney

Sydney, Nova Scotia

Sydney is a Canadian urban community in the province of Nova Scotia. It is situated on the east coast of Cape Breton Island and is administratively part of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality....

. In 1879, he married Kate Bown. Mackay served as treasurer for Cape Breton County

Cape Breton County, Nova Scotia

Cape Breton County, officially, County Cape Breton, is a county in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, on Cape Breton Island.Taking its name from Cape Breton, the most easterly point of the island which was called after the Bretons of Brittany, this municipality has what is probably the oldest...

.