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New polling, new joint-use school, Sask. Party & NDP nominate candidates, and a closer look at Saskatchewan Rivers
August 8, 2024 | Advertise with us
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Good morning! There’s a lot to cover today, so let’s get right to it!
Here’s The SKoop for Thursday, August 8:
Construction begins on a new joint-use school in Harbour Landing,
Insightrix releases first provincial polling of the summer,
Sask. Party & NDP nominate candidates, and
A closer look at the Saskatchewan Rivers constituency.
Today’s Top Stories
Construction underway on joint-use school in Harbour Landing
Work is officially underway on a second joint-use elementary school in Harbour Landing, which will accommodate over 800 students and add 90 new child care spaces.
Since first opening Harbour Landing School in 2017, this community has seen incredible growth with thousands of new… x.com/i/web/status/1…
— Scott Moe (@PremierScottMoe)
5:17 PM • Aug 7, 2024
Shovels are in the ground in Harbour Landing as the Government of Saskatchewan has announced the start of construction on a joint-use school in Regina.
Harbour Landing has grown substantially over the last number of years. The project will be built on 11 acres of land. The joint-use school will see room for 500 students in Regina Public, 350 students in Regina Catholic, and offer 90 childcare spaces.
Education Minister Jeremy Cockrill was at the site this week and said, “This new school is a significant milestone in building strong and vibrant communities that has come through the collaboration between our government and project partners. We are excited to see the progress on this Harbour Landing joint-use elementary school as it will provide families with a new innovative learning and child care facilities for years to come."
Sask. Party MLA for Regina Pasqua Muhammad Fiaz was also at the announcement and said, “This will be very exciting news for the families, for the students. This is good news for this very vibrant community.”
Insightrix polling shows a close race in Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan provincial polling (Insightrix)
After over five months without a publicly available horse race poll, Saskatoon-based Insightrix Research has released the results of a survey conducted in late July.
The poll was done online as part of the company’s ‘SaskWatch’ panel. 596 individuals were surveyed and the company ensured representation from all areas of the province. The topline results show a near-dead heat with the NDP in the lead at 48% and the Saskatchewan Party at 47%. Modelling done by polling aggregators shows the NDP on track to pick up seats in Regina, Saskatoon, and Prince Albert, while the Sask. Party maintains a strong lead in the nearly 29 rural seats.
The last provincial polling released publically was by Angus Reid in March. At that time, polling showed the Saskatchewan Party at 50%, NDP at 38%, SUP at 6% and others at 6%.
These provincial numbers are on par with previous Insightrix polling. In February, the firm ran a provincial poll that showed the NDP at 49% and the Saskatchewan Party at 47%, almost exactly the same over five months later.
The polling released this week indicates a tighter race than previous elections, especially in larger urban areas, while the Saskatchewan Party retains a solid lead in at least 29 of the 31 constituencies needed for a majority.
With few polls available, it will be interesting to see if other firms like Angus Reid release polling in the near future in order to compare results and validity.
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NDP nominates candidate in Melville-Saltcoats
Karen Hovind and Trent Wotherspoon.
The Saskatchewan New Democratic Party has nominated its candidate for the constituency of Melville-Saltcoats.
Karen Hovind won a contested nomination beating two other candidates. Hovind is the 48th candidate nominated by the party, and the 25th woman candidate on the slate.
Karen Hovind is a teacher. She was previously a town councillor in Saltcoats and currently works at Melville Comprehensive School. Hovind obtained her Master of Education degree in 2021 with a focus on social and structural issues that affect education. Hovind is also a STF Councillor for Good Spirit School Division.
The Saskatchewan Party’s Warren Kaeding is the Sask. Party MLA and candidate in this riding.
There are currently no NDP nominations scheduled for the remaining twelve constituencies.
Sask Party nominates candidate in Elphinstone Centre
Regina Elphinstone candidate Caesar Khan
The Saskatchewan Party has nominated its candidate for the constituency of Regina Elphinstone Centre.
Caesar Khan was acclaimed as the party’s candidate, becoming the 55th candidate nominated by the party ahead of this fall’s election.
Khan was the Sask. Party candidate in this riding in 2020. He is a local businessman in Regina. he was born in Bangladesh and resides in Regina with his wife and children.
This riding is currently held by incumbent NDP MLA Meara Conway.
The next nomination for the Saskatchewan Party will take place today in Kelvington-Wadena.
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Constituency Profile Series: Sponsored by Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA)
SUMA represents over 80% of Saskatchewan residents —cities, towns, villages, resort villages, and northern municipalities—that come together as one urban voice.
We’ve been here since 1905, advancing collective member interests with various government bodies, improving local governance, and fostering municipal growth. We are the urban hubs where you live, work, and play. We're where your children go to school, where you attend medical appointments at the clinic, and where you stop for coffee.
We are URBAN. To learn more visit www.suma.org.
Each week leading up to the 2024 election, The SKoop Political Briefing will highlight a constituency that has nominated a candidate from at least both major parties. Today, we look at Saskatchewan Rivers. This constituency is located where the North Saskatchewan River and the South Saskatchewan River merge. Communities in the riding include the towns of Big River and Choiceland; and the villages of White Fox, Debden, Meath Park, Candle Lake, Smeaton, and Christopher Lake.
The incumbent: Nadine Wilson was first elected in 2007 under the Saskatchewan Party banner and was reelected in 2011, 2016, and 2020. In 2021 she was removed from the Saskatchewan Party caucus for misrepresenting her COVID-19 vaccination status. She then formed the Saskatchewan United Party and was the party’s leader until a few weeks ago.
The challenger: Eric Schmalz was acclaimed as the Sask. Party candidate. He has served as the Reeve for the RM of Prince Albert since 2019 and previously worked as an RCMP officer.
The other challenger: Doug Racine was acclaimed as the NDP candidate. Racine served 12 years in the military, including a peacekeeping tour. He then completed a law degree and practiced law for 25 years. Racine is the founder of Aboriginal Law Group.
The takeaway: This is a likely a Sask. Party pickup, but will certainly be a race to keep an eye on. Wilson has been the longtime MLA for the region and has reasonable name recognition, but the Saskatchewan Party is more popular and Moe wants to win this seat and let Sask. United fizzle out. The NDP did win this riding in 2003 and have consistently garnered a third of the vote.
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