ndp make inroads but fall short of flipping key p.a., moose jaw seats
after the second preliminary count, which included mail-in ballots, the balance of seats appears set at 34 for the saskatchewan party and 27 for the upcoming first session of a new legislature.
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saskatchewan ndp leader carla beck, middle, delivers her concession speech while accompanied by her husband, guy, and her daughter and son, maya and nolan, right, on election night in regina, tuesday, oct. 29, 2024.
heywood yu
/
the canadian press
with a second preliminary count complete, and the final count set for nov. 7, saskatchewan’s 2024 general election came down to the wire in a handful of key constituencies. following the second count, which took place wednesday and included vote-by-mail ballots, the balance of seats appears set at 34 for the saskatchewan party and 27 for the saskatchewan ndp in the upcoming first session of a new legislature.
of particular note is the lack of sask. party seats from regina and just one seat in saskatoon, belonging to ken cheveldayoff in the saskatoon willowgrove constituency. cheveldayoff won the seat by just 178 votes, following the second count.
in saskatoon westview, and following the counting of mail-in ballots, the ndp’s april chiefcalf narrowly defeated incumbent sask. party candidate david buckingham by a mere 37 votes. buckingham, who was leading the vote before the second preliminary count, apologized during the campaign for using a racial slur while in the government caucus.
on the heels of the second count, the ndp have nearly doubled their seats in the legislature, and while the sask. party formed its fifth consecutive government, it did so narrowly. prince albert northcote, prince albert carlton, saskatoon willowgrove were each decided by well under 500 votes, while moose jaw wakamow was decided by 922. all four went to the saskatchewan party.
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that means the ndp came within four seats of forming government. in her election night speech, ndp leader carla beck addressed how close the party came but continued to project a message of change.
“we might not have crossed the finish line first tonight, but my friends, we have changed the landscape,” she said.
sask. party leader scott moe took a decidedly more conciliatory tone in his speech, saying that a message had been sent by the voters of the province.
“i’ve heard that message. our team has heard that message, and we must do better,” moe said.
the saskatchewan teachers’ federation (stf) in a press release this week expressed congratulations to newly elected and re-elected mlas “while encouraging them to keep public education among their top priorities over the coming weeks, months and years.”
binding arbitration has been agreed to, and the stf and the government are still going through the process to finalize a new contract that saw teachers across saskatchewan take historic job action in the face of what the government was offering.
“we have work ahead to ensure we rebuild relationships and continue our strong advocacy on behalf of saskatchewan’s students and teachers,” stf president samantha becotte said.
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seiu-west president barbara cape also congratulated the new government while expressing her desire for change in how public health care has been handled over the sask. party government’s time in power.
“after 17 years of a sask. party government, our members in health care and community-based organizations have expressed frustration and a desire for change after this election,” cape said in an emailed statement.
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