One NDP in, One Out

As has been mentioned previously, Calvert has given his MLAs until May 17th to give notice as to whether or not they will seek re-election.

Today the Leader Post announced that Doreen Hamilton will not be seeking re-election. This is good news for the Saskatchewan Party; without the incumbant advantage, this seat, which Hamilton won by roughly 500 votes in 2003, will likely go to Christine Tell of the Sask Party. Of all the potential seats in Regina, this one was already most likely to be won by the Saskatchewan Party. With Tell's high profile and Hamilton's absence, it seems as close to a sure thing as a Regina seat can be for the Sask Party.

The Star Phoenix also reported today that Maynard Sonntag will be seeking the NDP nomination in Meadow Lake at the June nomination meeting. This was another very close riding and one that the Sask Party had had their eye on. However, the candidate they had originally nominated will not longer be running and they have yet to replace him. In any case, I'm sure it will be a very close fight, as it was in 2003.

It will be interesting to see what Andrew Thomson has to say in the next couple of weeks and even Pat Atkinson, who, after over 20 years in the legislature may decide to pack it in rather than sit on the opposition side again.

With Princess Anne's visit to Saskatchewan June 14, it is unlikely that Calvert will call a Spring election. Instead, it looks more like the fall. Would a summer election ever happen, though? It has happened elsewhere, like Nova Scotia in 2003 for instance. The last summer provincial election in Saskatchewan was on August 14, 1908 when Walter Scott won re-election over Frederick Haultain. For the next half a decade, elections were held every June until 1964, when it was held in April. Since then, elections have been in either the Spring or fall, with most popular months being June and October. It might be interesting to see a July election in Saskatchewan for the first time.