Progressive Conservative Party of Saskatchewan
Encyclopedia
The Progressive Conservative Party of Saskatchewan is a right-of-centre political party
in the Canadian
province of Saskatchewan
. Prior to 1942, it was known as the Conservative Party of Saskatchewan. Members are commonly known as Tories
.
It nominated candidates for the first time in the 1912 election
, seven years after the province of Saskatchewan was formed. The party emerged from the Provincial Rights Party
after the retirement of that party's leader, Frederick W. A. G. Haultain
.
The Conservative Party's best performance in the first half of the twentieth century was in the 1929 election
, when it won 36% of the popular vote and 24 out of 63 seats. Despite having fewer seats than the Liberals
, the Conservatives were able to form a coalition government
with Progressive Party
MLAs and independents. Conservative leader James T.M. Anderson
became Premier
.
The Tories were suspected of being in league with the Ku Klux Klan, which was a strong force in the province at the time, and railed against Catholics
and French-Canadians
. The Anderson government introduced amendments to the Schools Act banning French
as a language of instruction, as well as the display of religious symbols in Catholic schools
.
The "Co-operative government", as it was called, was defeated in the 1934 election
, and the Conservative Party lost all of its seats in the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan
. This loss can be attributed to several factors:
With the rise of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation
, politics in the province became polarized between the Liberals
and the CCF. The CCF became the "New Democratic Party" in 1961. The Conservatives were frozen out of the provincial legislature for decades.
No Conservative was elected as a Member of the Legislative Assembly
(MLA) until thirty years later when the party won a single seat in 1964 election
. It lost that foothold three years later in the 1967 election
.
The Tories returned to the legislature in the 1975 election
. The Progressive Conservatives won 7 seats to the Liberals' 15 and the NDP's 39.
In the 1978 election
, the Liberals were wiped out, and the Tories became the Official Opposition
with 17 seats to the governing NDP's 44.
In 1982 election
, the Progressive Conservatives under Grant Devine
formed a majority government
for the first time. They were re-elected in 1986 election
, but defeated in the 1991 election
, due to large budgetary deficits, an unpopular imposition of harmonized sales taxes, and a scheme entitled "Fair Share Saskatchewan" to decentralize civil service functions from Regina and privatize crown corporations.
In the years following their defeat, 14 Conservative members of the legislature, one NDP member of the legislature, and two caucus workers were convicted of fraud and breach of trust for illegally diverting hundreds of thousands of dollars from government allowances in a phony expense-claim scam. During inquiry into the scandal, many innocent party members were placed under heavy scrutiny. Jack Wolfe
committed suicide when faced with the agony of possibly being scrutinized for wrongdoing himself, or having the testify against his former colleagues. The party's image was badly damaged by this scandal. Although they managed to win five seats in the 1995 election
, this total was less than both the NDP and the resurgent Liberals.
Although most former members and supporters joined the Saskatchewan Party
in 1997, the Tories are believed to retain a substantial amount of money, which the party would forfeit to the provincial government if it ever became de-registered. Because the party needed to run at least 10 candidates in each general election
to keep its registration, a hand-picked group keep the party technically alive and have run paper candidates in each of the last two provincial elections to ensure that the party remains registered.
In the September 16, 1999 election
, the party nominated 14 candidates, who collected 1,609 votes, 0.4% of the provincial total. Its best result was in Saskatoon Nutana
, where Patrick L. Smith received 518 votes (7.6%). In the November 5, 2003 provincial election, the party nominated 11 candidates, who received a total of 665 votes, which was 0.16% of the provincial total.
In June 2005, the party announced that it is now taking applications for new members, and that it would hold a meeting of members to decide the future of the party. In the meantime, changes to provincial electoral laws were passed during the previous Legislature decreased the number of candidates the party needs to run in general elections from ten to two. Some have argued that the NDP passed these changes because they saw it as being in their best interests to help the PC party stay alive.
On May 27, 2006, the party held a weekend convention. In total, 42 delegates attended the convention in Saskatoon and voted to resurrect the Progressive Conservative Party. Delegates elected Lori Isinger as party president, and picked Rick Swenson to serve as interim Leader. The next order of business would have been to use the money that was put into a trust before their two election hiatus. The party has had trouble with that, and has accused the trustees of conspiring with the Saskatchewan Party
so the PC party won't be able to run many candidates or a serious campaign, and thus not compete with the Saskatchewan party for votes in the next election. The party is suing the trustees and the Saskatchewan Party to get at their funds.
The party ran five candidates in the 2007 election
. Swenson and other party members kept a relatively low profile but did some modest campaigning. The party collected 832 votes (0.18% of the total).
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
in the Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
province of Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
. Prior to 1942, it was known as the Conservative Party of Saskatchewan. Members are commonly known as Tories
Tory (disambiguation)
The term Tory may refer to:* Tory originally the opponents to the Whigs, furthermore various political parties* Conservative Party * Tory , the ancestor of the modern UK Conservative Party* Scottish Unionist Party...
.
It nominated candidates for the first time in the 1912 election
Saskatchewan general election, 1912
The Saskatchewan general election of 1912 was the third provincial election in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It was held on July 11, 1912 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan. Premier Walter Scott led the Liberal Party of Saskatchewan to a third term in office with...
, seven years after the province of Saskatchewan was formed. The party emerged from the Provincial Rights Party
Provincial Rights Party
The Provincial Rights Party was a Canadian political party founded and led by Frederick W.A.G. Haultain in 1905 to contest elections in the new province of Saskatchewan.Haultain had been Premier of the North-West Territories prior to the province's creation...
after the retirement of that party's leader, Frederick W. A. G. Haultain
Frederick W. A. G. Haultain
Sir Frederick William Alpin Gordon Haultain was a lawyer and a long serving Canadian politician and judge. His career in provincial and territorial legislatures stretched into four decades...
.
The Conservative Party's best performance in the first half of the twentieth century was in the 1929 election
Saskatchewan general election, 1929
The Saskatchewan general election of 1929 was the seventh provincial election held in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It was held on June 6, 1929 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan....
, when it won 36% of the popular vote and 24 out of 63 seats. Despite having fewer seats than the Liberals
Saskatchewan Liberal Party
The Saskatchewan Liberal Party is a liberal political party in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan.-Early history :The party dominated Saskatchewan politics for the province's first forty years providing six of the first seven Premiers, and being in power for all but five of the years between the...
, the Conservatives were able to form a coalition government
Coalition government
A coalition government is a cabinet of a parliamentary government in which several political parties cooperate. The usual reason given for this arrangement is that no party on its own can achieve a majority in the parliament...
with Progressive Party
Progressive Party of Canada
The Progressive Party of Canada was a political party in Canada in the 1920s and 1930s. It was linked with the provincial United Farmers parties in several provinces and, in Manitoba, ran candidates and formed governments as the Progressive Party of Manitoba...
MLAs and independents. Conservative leader James T.M. Anderson
James Thomas Milton Anderson
James Thomas Milton Anderson was Saskatchewan's fifth Premier and the first Conservative to hold the office....
became Premier
Premier of Saskatchewan
The Premier of Saskatchewan is the first minister for the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. They are the province's head of government and de facto chief executive....
.
The Tories were suspected of being in league with the Ku Klux Klan, which was a strong force in the province at the time, and railed against Catholics
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Regina
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Regina is a Roman Catholic archdiocese comprising the southern part of the Canadian province of Saskatchewan, as far north as the 30th township, or about 51°30' lat, that includes the suffragan dioceses of Prince-Albert, and Saskatoon...
and French-Canadians
Fransaskois
Fransaskois are francophones or French Canadians living in the Prairie province of Saskatchewan. The term franco-saskatchewanian may also be used on occasion, although in practice it is rare due to its length and unwieldiness.-Population:...
. The Anderson government introduced amendments to the Schools Act banning French
Canadian French
Canadian French is an umbrella term referring to the varieties of French spoken in Canada. French is the mother tongue of nearly seven million Canadians, a figure constituting roughly 22% of the national population. At the federal level it has co-official status alongside English...
as a language of instruction, as well as the display of religious symbols in Catholic schools
Separate school
In Canada, separate school refers to a particular type of school that has constitutional status in three provinces and statutory status in three territories...
.
The "Co-operative government", as it was called, was defeated in the 1934 election
Saskatchewan general election, 1934
The Saskatchewan general election of 1934 was the eighth provincial election held in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It was held on June 19, 1934, to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan....
, and the Conservative Party lost all of its seats in the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan
Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan
The 25th Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan was in power from 2003 until November 20, 2007. It was controlled by the Saskatchewan New Democratic Party under premier Lorne Calvert.-Members:-By-elections:...
. This loss can be attributed to several factors:
- the controversy over the government's School Act;
- the government's inability to deal with the Great DepressionGreat DepressionThe Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
dust bowlDust BowlThe Dust Bowl, or the Dirty Thirties, was a period of severe dust storms causing major ecological and agricultural damage to American and Canadian prairie lands from 1930 to 1936...
which wiped out the province's agrarian economy; and - the unpopularity of the federal Conservative government of R.B. Bennett.
With the rise of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation
Saskatchewan New Democratic Party
The Saskatchewan New Democratic Party is a social-democratic political party in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It currently forms the official opposition, but has been a dominant force in Saskatchewan politics since the 1940s...
, politics in the province became polarized between the Liberals
Saskatchewan Liberal Party
The Saskatchewan Liberal Party is a liberal political party in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan.-Early history :The party dominated Saskatchewan politics for the province's first forty years providing six of the first seven Premiers, and being in power for all but five of the years between the...
and the CCF. The CCF became the "New Democratic Party" in 1961. The Conservatives were frozen out of the provincial legislature for decades.
No Conservative was elected as a Member of the Legislative Assembly
Member of the Legislative Assembly
A Member of the Legislative Assembly or a Member of the Legislature , is a representative elected by the voters of a constituency to the legislature or legislative assembly of a sub-national jurisdiction....
(MLA) until thirty years later when the party won a single seat in 1964 election
Saskatchewan general election, 1964
The Saskatchewan general election of 1964 was the fifteenth provincial election held in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It was held on April 22, 1964, to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan....
. It lost that foothold three years later in the 1967 election
Saskatchewan general election, 1967
The Saskatchewan general election of 1967 was the sixteenth provincial election held in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It was held on October 11, 1967, to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan....
.
The Tories returned to the legislature in the 1975 election
Saskatchewan general election, 1975
The Saskatchewan general election of 1975 was the eighteenth provincial election held in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It was held on June 11, 1975, to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan...
. The Progressive Conservatives won 7 seats to the Liberals' 15 and the NDP's 39.
In the 1978 election
Saskatchewan general election, 1978
The Saskatchewan general election of 1978 was the nineteenth provincial election in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It was held on October 18, 1978, to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan....
, the Liberals were wiped out, and the Tories became the Official Opposition
Leader of the Opposition (Saskatchewan)
A list of parliamentary opposition leaders in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan, from 1906 to the present. There was no designated Leader of the Opposition for the sessions of 1921 and 1922.In the period 1925-1929 C.E. Tran and J.T.M...
with 17 seats to the governing NDP's 44.
In 1982 election
Saskatchewan general election, 1982
The Saskatchewan general election of 1982 was the twentieth provincial election held in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It was held on April 26, 1982, to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan....
, the Progressive Conservatives under Grant Devine
Grant Devine
Donald Grant Devine was the 11th Premier of Saskatchewan from May 8, 1982 to November 1, 1991.- Early life :Born in Regina, Saskatchewan, he received a B.Sc. in Agriculture degree specializing in Agricultural Economics in 1967 from the University of Saskatchewan, an M.Sc. specializing in...
formed a majority government
Majority government
A majority government is when the governing party has an absolute majority of seats in the legislature or parliament in a parliamentary system. This is as opposed to a minority government, where even the largest party wins only a plurality of seats and thus must constantly bargain for support from...
for the first time. They were re-elected in 1986 election
Saskatchewan general election, 1986
The Saskatchewan general election of 1986 was the twenty-first provincial election held in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It was held on October 20, 1986, to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan....
, but defeated in the 1991 election
Saskatchewan general election, 1991
The Saskatchewan general election of 1991 was the twenty-second provincial election held in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It was held on October 21, 1991, to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan....
, due to large budgetary deficits, an unpopular imposition of harmonized sales taxes, and a scheme entitled "Fair Share Saskatchewan" to decentralize civil service functions from Regina and privatize crown corporations.
In the years following their defeat, 14 Conservative members of the legislature, one NDP member of the legislature, and two caucus workers were convicted of fraud and breach of trust for illegally diverting hundreds of thousands of dollars from government allowances in a phony expense-claim scam. During inquiry into the scandal, many innocent party members were placed under heavy scrutiny. Jack Wolfe
John Thomas Wolfe
John Thomas Wolfe was a community veterinarian before becoming a Canadian provincial politician. He was the Progressive Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan for the constituency of Assiniboia-Gravelbourg, from 1988 until 1991.- Early life :Wolfe was born in Rockglen,...
committed suicide when faced with the agony of possibly being scrutinized for wrongdoing himself, or having the testify against his former colleagues. The party's image was badly damaged by this scandal. Although they managed to win five seats in the 1995 election
Saskatchewan general election, 1995
The Saskatchewan general election of 1995 was the twenty-third provincial election held in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It was held on June 21, 1995 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan....
, this total was less than both the NDP and the resurgent Liberals.
Although most former members and supporters joined the Saskatchewan Party
Saskatchewan Party
The Saskatchewan Party is a conservative liberal political party in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The party was established in 1997 by a coalition of former provincial Progressive Conservative and Liberal party members and supporters who sought to remove the Saskatchewan New Democratic...
in 1997, the Tories are believed to retain a substantial amount of money, which the party would forfeit to the provincial government if it ever became de-registered. Because the party needed to run at least 10 candidates in each general election
General election
In a parliamentary political system, a general election is an election in which all or most members of a given political body are chosen. The term is usually used to refer to elections held for a nation's primary legislative body, as distinguished from by-elections and local elections.The term...
to keep its registration, a hand-picked group keep the party technically alive and have run paper candidates in each of the last two provincial elections to ensure that the party remains registered.
In the September 16, 1999 election
Saskatchewan general election, 1999
The Saskatchewan general election of 1999 was the twenty-fourth provincial election held in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It was held on September 16, 1999 to elect members of the 24th Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan....
, the party nominated 14 candidates, who collected 1,609 votes, 0.4% of the provincial total. Its best result was in Saskatoon Nutana
Saskatoon Nutana
Saskatoon Nutana is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan, Canada. It is named for the neighbourhood of Nutana which is one of several within its electoral boundaries.- External links :*...
, where Patrick L. Smith received 518 votes (7.6%). In the November 5, 2003 provincial election, the party nominated 11 candidates, who received a total of 665 votes, which was 0.16% of the provincial total.
In June 2005, the party announced that it is now taking applications for new members, and that it would hold a meeting of members to decide the future of the party. In the meantime, changes to provincial electoral laws were passed during the previous Legislature decreased the number of candidates the party needs to run in general elections from ten to two. Some have argued that the NDP passed these changes because they saw it as being in their best interests to help the PC party stay alive.
On May 27, 2006, the party held a weekend convention. In total, 42 delegates attended the convention in Saskatoon and voted to resurrect the Progressive Conservative Party. Delegates elected Lori Isinger as party president, and picked Rick Swenson to serve as interim Leader. The next order of business would have been to use the money that was put into a trust before their two election hiatus. The party has had trouble with that, and has accused the trustees of conspiring with the Saskatchewan Party
Saskatchewan Party
The Saskatchewan Party is a conservative liberal political party in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The party was established in 1997 by a coalition of former provincial Progressive Conservative and Liberal party members and supporters who sought to remove the Saskatchewan New Democratic...
so the PC party won't be able to run many candidates or a serious campaign, and thus not compete with the Saskatchewan party for votes in the next election. The party is suing the trustees and the Saskatchewan Party to get at their funds.
The party ran five candidates in the 2007 election
Saskatchewan general election, 2007
The 26th Saskatchewan general election was held on November 7, 2007; the writ was dropped on October 10, 2007. The election determined the composition of the 26th Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan....
. Swenson and other party members kept a relatively low profile but did some modest campaigning. The party collected 832 votes (0.18% of the total).
Party leaders
- Wellington Bartley Willoughby (1912–1917)
- Donald McLean (1917–1921)
- James T. M. Anderson (1924 – October 28, 1936)
- John DiefenbakerJohn DiefenbakerJohn George Diefenbaker, PC, CH, QC was the 13th Prime Minister of Canada, serving from June 21, 1957, to April 22, 1963...
(October 28, 1936 – 1940) - H. E. Keown (1940–1944)
- Rupert Ramsay (1944 – October 12, 1949)
- Alvin Hamilton (October 12, 1949 – 1957)
- Martin PedersonMartin PedersonMartin Pederson was a Canadian politician, who was leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Saskatchewan from 1958 to 1968....
(October 28, 1958 – 1968) - Ed Nasserden (February 28, 1970 – March 18, 1973)
- Dick CollverDick CollverRichard Lee "Dick" Collver led the Saskatchewan Progressive Conservative Party from 1973 to 1978.Having earned an arts degree in economics from the University of Alberta, he articled as an accountant for Price Waterhouse in Calgary before moving to Saskatchewan in 1965...
(March 18, 1973 – November 9, 1979) - Grant DevineGrant DevineDonald Grant Devine was the 11th Premier of Saskatchewan from May 8, 1982 to November 1, 1991.- Early life :Born in Regina, Saskatchewan, he received a B.Sc. in Agriculture degree specializing in Agricultural Economics in 1967 from the University of Saskatchewan, an M.Sc. specializing in...
(November 9, 1979 – October 8, 1992) - Rick Swenson (October 8, 1992 – November 21, 1994) (interim)
- Bill BoydBill Boyd (Canadian politician)Bill Boyd is a provincial level politician from Saskatchewan, Canada. He served as a member of the Saskatchewan Legislature from 1991 to 2002 and returned to office in the 2007 Saskatchewan general election....
(November 21, 1994 – August 8, 1997) - Iris Dennis (interim) (1997–2006)
- Rick Swenson (May 31, 2006 – present)
See also
- Politics of SaskatchewanPolitics of SaskatchewanThe Politics of Saskatchewan are part of the Canadian federal political system along with the other Canadian provinces. Saskatchewan has a Lieutenant-Governor, Gordon Barnhart, who is the representative of the Crown in Right of Saskatchewan, an elected premier, Brad Wall, leading the Cabinet, and a...
- Progressive Conservative Party of Saskatchewan leadership conventionsProgressive Conservative Party of Saskatchewan leadership conventionsThis page shows the results of leadership elections in the Progressive Conservative Party of Saskatchewan, Canada,...
.