November 7, 2024 | Advertise with us

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Donald Trump wins U.S. Presidential election

The 45th President of the United States of America will also be the 47th.

Former president Donald Trump was projected as the winner on Tuesday night. Trump won the battleground states of Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, North Carolina, and Georgia. He is leading in Arizona, Nevada and Michigan. In addition to winning the electoral college, Trump won the popular vote for the first time in his career with over 70 million votes in his favour. Republicans also took control of the Senate. The House of Representatives is too close to call.

During the election campaign, Trump promised to impose some form of import tariffs and to be tougher on countries that do not meet their NATO defence spending target of 2% of GDP. Canada currently spends 1.3% of GDP on defence and plans on getting to 1.76% by the end of the decade. At a rally in South Carolina earlier this year, Trump said the U.S. would not protect allies who fail to meet the 2% target.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau congratulated Trump on his victory saying, “The friendship between Canada and the U.S. is the envy of the world. I know President Trump and I will create more opportunity, prosperity, and security for both of our nations.”

During the Trump presidency, Canada will hold a general election and the USMCA (formerly NAFTA) will be renegotiated.

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Moe calls on the federal government to end labour dispute in BC

Saskatchewan officials are raising alarms over job action in British Columbia, with multiple cabinet ministers penning a letter to their federal counterparts.

Reuters is reporting that International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514 foremen began limited strike actions on Monday at 8:00 a.m. Pacific time (16:00 GMT) and their employer, the B.C. Maritime Employers Association, locked out workers at 4:30 p.m. Industries and provincial governments across Canada are alarmed by the dispute, which is occurring at the same time as a partial strike is blocking 40 percent of container traffic of the Port of Montreal, according to the Maritime Employers Association, which represents port terminal operators.

Potash, coal, pulse crops, beef, pork and forestry products are some of the commodities affected. The ports also play a major role in importing components for Canadian manufacturers from Asian and European suppliers. Bulk-grain shipments are excluded from the disruption, according to Canada's labour code.

Premier Scott Moe posted a letter to the federal labour and transport ministers saying, “The federal government needs to take immediate action to end this labour disruption that will once again negatively impact the products we export to the world. We are thankful the federal government did the right thing when many of these same economic powerhouse industries were threatened with a rail disruption, and we’d ask them to do the same today.” The letter was signed by cabinet ministers Lori Carr, Jim Reiter, Jeremy Harrison, and David Marit.

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A look at voter turnout in civic elections

Urban and rural municipalities will hold civic elections across the province next week. Ten percent of voters have already cast a ballot in the two largest urban centres, but turnout is projected to be low.

The two major centres have released advanced voter turnout details. In Saskatoon, 19,400 people, roughly 10% of voters, cast a ballot during advance polling. In Regina, 15,190 people voted in that city's advance polls. That's an increase from the 14,374 people who took advantage of advance polling in 2020.

Regina City Clerk Jim Nicol said, "There's always a challenge with the provincial election being about less than two weeks prior. However, we have a very large list of candidates, so I'm hoping that that does generate interest." In Regina, voter turnout hasn't gone above 50% in a general municipal election since 1988.

In 2020, voter turnout for a municipal election in Regina was 21%. Turnout was 27% in Saskatoon.

In 2022 the Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA) called on the provincial government to change the dates of municipal elections. Based on feedback from its members, SUMA recommended that city elections be held in May, while elections for towns and villages could be held in September.

“In 2020, our hometowns experienced voter confusion with the provincial and municipal election dates so close together, and inclement weather also created challenges,” SUMA President Randy Golden said at the time. “As the order of government closest to the people, it is vital for Saskatchewan's residents to be able to exercise their democratic right and vote in their local election.”

In a statement, the Ministry of Government Relations said it heard from some cities that they wanted the municipal election date to be moved, but that "there was no consensus between urban and rural stakeholders on a date, and splitting the sector would have negative implications for school board elections.”

Municipal voters can cast a ballot on November 13. The SKoop will bring you results from across the province.

More news and info

• What does a 2nd Trump term mean for Canada? To start, steep tariffs and pressure to spend more on military (CBC News)

• UN Palestinian rapporteur faces backlash after press conference on Parliament Hill (The Globe and Mail)

• Minister Joly calls $9M condo purchase an 'operational decision' (CTV News)