The steering committee set up to create the new political party has just taken a first step with the acceptance of its name by Elections Saskatchewan.
The next step is to collect the necessary 2,500 signatures by the end of May.
According to Ken Rutherford, one of the steering committee members, another party will breathe new life into Saskatchewan politics.
People no longer want to vote for the lesser of two evils and they are more concerned about dividing the province than dividing the vote
he said in a press release.
Provincial policies called into question
Former Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz, who was MP for Battlefords-Lloydminster, and Independent MP Nadine Wilson are among the figures who support the creation of a new party on the political spectrum, due to some disagreements over the direction of the Saskatchewan Party.
They denounce, among other things, the management of the pandemic by the power in place and the overload in hospitals.
We have before us a health care system that is still overloaded with emergency surgeries, which have never been taken into account.
laments Gerry Ritz.
We see a lot of money that has been spent with no real accountability attached to that money
he continues.
” Ultimately, it is the lack of a plan that is to blame. »
Ritz also said there should be an audit of Saskatchewan’s health care system. He also wants the province to take part in federal discussions on vaccination mandates.
Saskatchewan has a lot of autonomy within this confederation we call Canada, and I don’t think they exercise it the way they could.
Saskatchewan United held public meetings to present its objectives and the mission it has set itself on the provincial scene. Meetings were held with former members of the Saskatchewan Party, supporters of the NDP and liberals, informs Gerry Ritz.
He relates that the movement Saskatchewan United is also in talks with the Buffalo Party of Saskatchewan, another movement that is not yet officially registered as a political party.
I think it’s about getting people out who didn’t vote last time. It’s about, you know, galvanizing people. There must be a better solution than not having a plan and just stumbling here
argues Mr. Ritz.
What will be the weight of a new party in the elections?
The former political journalist and author of From Left to Right : Saskatchewan’s Political and Economic TransformationDale Eisler, believes that the formation of these new right-wing parties poses a significant threat to the Saskatchewan Party and its continued power.
If the two parties form, then I think they become a real electoral threat. I don’t believe they could win government at all, but they could certainly weaken the Saskatchewan Party’s electoral sway and, in some sort of perverse sense, create a meaningful electoral opportunity for the NDP.
The arrival of these political parties could force the Saskatchewan Party to adopt new measures to consolidate its electoral base.
It will be interesting to observe, assuming all of this goes ahead, how the Saskatchewan Party will react politically and in a political sense to this
responded Deputy Prime Minister Donna Harpauer.
With information from Laura Sicarpelletti
Reference-ici.radio-canada.ca