Bucky Belanger of the NDP has won the Athabasca riding with 1,524 votes beating out the Sask. Party’s Philip Elliott who got 598 votes.
Summary: Perhaps the safest NDP riding in all of Saskatchewan, Buckley Belanger seeks a sixth term in Athabasca.
Boundaries: The riding includes all areas in Saskatchewan north of Meadow Lake provincial park and west of the 106th parallel. It also includes the population to the west of Black Lake, and the communities around Sled Lake and Smoothstone Lake to the east of Meadow Lake provincial park.
Last Election: Belanger defeated Saskatchewan Party candidate Bobby Woods by over 800 votes, 64-35 per cent.
History: Belanger was first elected to this riding as a Liberal in 1995, but switched to the NDP and ran in a 1998 byelection—where he received 94 per cent of the vote—and has won easily ever since. Prior to that, the riding was held by NDP MLA Frederick Thompson from 1975 to 1995, and Liberal MLA Allan Guy from 1960 to 1975. It has never been won by a Progressive Conservative or Saskatchewan Party candidate.
Candidates
Saskatchewan Party: Philip Elliott, electronic technician
NDP: Buckley Belanger, MLA since 1995
Green: Max Morin, member of Committee for Future Generations
Liberal: Michael Wolverine, business and economic development professional
- Norad looking to NATO to help detect threats over the Arctic, chief says
- Alberta to overhaul municipal rules to include sweeping new powers, municipal political parties
- Grocery code: How Ottawa has tried to get Loblaw, Walmart on board
- Canada, U.S., U.K. lay additional sanctions on Iran over attack on Israel
Comments