Have you ever wanted to be the leader of a provincial or federal political party?
The window has closed on the federal party options, unless you want to start one of your own. But there is still a chance for those with provincial aspirations, and in one case, I’m not sure how much experience would actually be needed.
Of course, the federal Conservatives had their leadership race earlier this year, and elected Regina’s Andrew Scheer, a likeable fellow who has seemingly done a pretty good job thus far.
Up next is the federal New Democratic Party’s (NDP) leadership race. It’s a four-candidate field, but if you thought the federal Tory leadership was complex, with 13 ballots needed before a winner was chosen, the NDP race is even worse.
Voting for the first ballot is underway for the NDP. If a second ballot is needed, voting will start on Oct. 1. If a third ballot is needed, it will begin on Oct. 8.
It makes me long for the days of the good, old-fashioned leadership conventions that were resolved in a day or two.
Provincially, the governing Sask. Party and the opposition New Democratic Party are in the midst of their leadership races. The Sask. Party has five candidates aiming to replace the still-popular Brad Wall as the party leader and provincial premier.
Scott Moe, who was in Estevan earlier this week, has the support of much of the party’s caucus, but we’ll see if he has the necessary backing of the rank-and-file members who ultimately determine victory.
The Sask. Party has a good field of candidates, but there doesn’t appear to be that star candidate who will captivate the public in the way that Wall has done for more than a decade.
The NDP, meanwhile, has a fascinating race developing between veteran MLA Trent Wotherspoon and rookie MLA Dr. Ryan Mieli, who is well-known thanks to his previous runs for the party’s leadership and his work in healthcare.
Both leadership races will go a long ways in determining the directions for their respective parties. And with the 2020 provincial election a far more interesting battle thanks to Wall’s pending retirement, these leadership races will also go a long ways in determining who forms government to start the next decade.
The provincial Liberals are in need of a new leader as well, after their leader stepped down earlier this month. Now, if you could have named their former leader, then you probably are a political junkie.
The provincial Liberals, of course, have struggled to maintain their relevance for most of this century, thanks to a revolving door in leadership since David Karwacki’s resignation in 2007, to go with some strategic errors and the disdain for the federal Liberal Party in many areas of the province.
(For those who didn’t know, the Libs’ former leader was Darrin Lamoureux).
If you have ever wanted to be the leader of a provincial political party, the Liberal gig might be the one for you, as long as you can handle diminishing relevance for your party and overwhelming defeats on election night.
Our neighbours to the west in Alberta have a leadership campaign underway for the United Conservative Party, and in B.C., there’s a leadership race about to begin to replace Christy Clark as the head of the B.C. Liberals. (The Liberals in that province have been conservative for more than two decades).
It’s inevitable that there would be change and upheaval with the leaders of political parties. Leaders step down for a variety of reasons. Crushing defeats. A lack of internal support. Health issues. A desire to do something different.
But to have this many high-profile races happening simultaneously is rare. The two main political parties in Saskatchewan, the No. 3 federal party in the country, and multiple other prominent, natural governing parties in other provinces are looking for leaders.
It’s not easy being the new leader of a party, either. That person has to bring together the party’s supporters, gain their trust and try to eliminate any divisions stemming from the leadership race.
Once upon a time, baseball stadiums would echo with vendors shouting “Programs, can’t tell the players without a program.” That attitude also seems to be ringing true for political parties.
