Alec Salloum
Regina Leader-Post
Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre is set to make his first stop in Saskatchewan on the heels of an endorsement from Premier Scott Moe.
That endorsement came Wednesday, just a few days before the upcoming April 28 federal election. Poilievre is scheduled to be in Saskatoon on Thursday for a rally and then a news conference on Friday before leaving in the afternoon.
Speaking in a video filmed in his hometown of Shellbrook, Sask., Moe said Ottawa has felt “a million miles away. That’s because we’ve had a federal government that has turned its back on this part of the country.”
The premier said the Liberal Party government has made it more difficult for Saskatchewan to extract and sell resources. His comment focused on, but did not explicitly state, which policy planks swayed him to vote Conservative in his federal riding.
“Saskatchewan will never be part of the U.S., but isn’t it time we had a government that treats us like we’re a part of Canada? That’s why I’m voting Conservative and for Pierre Poilievre to be our next prime minister,” Moe said in a video posted to X, formerly known as Twitter.
With 14 federal ridings, Saskatchewan has been a reliable Conservative stronghold, electing a unanimous slate of candidates in the past two national elections.
Moe’s endorsement of Poilievre is no surprise as members of the Saskatchewan Party stated during question period this session that they intend to vote for Conservative candidates.
But an outright endorsement is “not the norm” for a premier, said Tom McIntosh, a professor of politics and international studies at the University of Regina.
“Premiers generally don’t announce a preference,” he said in an interview Wednesday.
McIntosh added that this kind of endorsement wasn’t even common back when the Progressive Conservative Party of Saskatchewan was governing in the province and the federal Progressive Conservative Party of Canada was in power, too.
The Conservatives last formed government in Saskatchewan for much of the 1980s, ending in 1991. Following several more years under the NDP, the province has been governed by the Sask. Party since 2007.
While the premier’s plan to vote Conservative isn’t a shock, McIntosh said Moe’s public endorsement of Poilievre may not be the best move.
At the end of the day, a party leader will form government and, regardless of what colour tie they wear, the province will need to work with the prime minister and his team.
“I’m not sure it’s necessarily in the best interest of the province to signal an antagonistic relationship with the feds before we formally know who the next prime minister will be,” said McIntosh.
Poilievre to make campaign stop in Saskatoon
But as the end of the election campaign draws near, why is Poilievre coming to Saskatchewan now?
For one, it’s a short campaign, said McIntosh.
When former prime minister Justin Trudeau bowed out and Mark Carney replaced him as the new Liberal Party leader and prime minister, the race tightened. The Conservative Party, which once looked to be a surefire majority government in waiting, saw a reversal of fortunes in the polls which now show a high likelihood of the Liberals forming government for a fourth consecutive term.
“Why come and preach to the converted?” said McIntosh.
For the Conservative Party, this election cycle demanded more attention on battleground ridings. Saskatchewan, being resoundingly blue in the past two elections, did not necessarily need the same attention as other more contentious regions, explained McIntosh.
“He has, at worst, 11 of the 14 seats sewn up. Probably 13 of 14 of the seats will go to the Conservatives,” he said.
As of Wednesday, online political polling aggregator 338Canada was projecting the northern riding of Desnethé—Missinippi—Churchill River could flip to the Liberals. That would make it the first riding held by the party in Saskatchewan since Ralph Goodale last won in 2015.
“He needs seats in Ontario and B.C. if he’s going to either hold the Liberals to a minority or eke out a minority himself,” said McIntosh.
But Saskatchewan has some ridings that look to be contested, in particular Regina—Wascana and potentially Saskatoon—University, according to 338Canada.
With only a handful of days to go until election day, a rally planned in a location where Poilievre enjoys significant support could be a way to “shore up the base” of supporters, said McIntosh.
alsalloum@postmedia.com
