Sask. MP won't run in next election
Changes to riding boundary behind decision: Vidal
Saskatchewan MP Gary Vidal has announced he won't seek re-election in light of boundary changes planned before the next federal election.
“The boundaries of the Desnethe—missinippi—churchill River riding that I have served since Oct. 21, 2019 are changing very drastically,” Vidal said in a letter posted to social media Tuesday.
“Though it is not a legal requirement that a member of Parliament live in the riding they serve, for me it is a personal requirement and one that I believe in very strongly.”
The new boundaries will be in effect for a federal general election called any time after April 22. The changes mean Vidal will reside in the Battlefords-lloydminister-meadow Lake riding and he says the Conservative Party of Canada has decided there will not be an open nomination to determine who will be on the ballot for the party in that riding.
Although not the outcome he expected, Vidal said circumstances beyond his control have “dictated” he “move on.”
“Serving as a Member of Parliament for an incredible riding has been an honor and a privilege,” his letter said. “I have made friends and built authentic relationships with many people that I will cherish for the rest of my life.”
Proud of the work he and his team have done, Vidal says they will continued to do that work until the next election.
“I will be forever grateful to those who have contributed to my journey,” he wrote. “I say a sincere thank you to each and everyone of you.”
Born and raised in Meadow Lake, Vidal is a chartered accountant and was mayor of Meadow Lake for eight years.
When first elected in 2019, Desnethe—missinippi—churchill River was the biggest of Saskatchewan's 14 federal ridings, stretching over 304,711 square kilometres. One of only four Indigenous majority ridings in the country, with more than 70 per cent of its population identifying as First Nations or Métis as of 2019, it bounced from the Liberals to the Conservatives and then to the NDP in 2015.
Vidal ran against Liberal Tammy Cook-searson, then five-term chief of the Lac La Ronge Indian Band and one of the two most populous First Nations in the riding, and incumbent Georgina Jolibois of the NDP.
Since elected, he has held the role of critic for both Indigenous Services Canada and Crown Indigenous Relations and currently serves as the shadow minister of Indigenous Services for the Conservatives.
Vidal's announcement is just the latest in a swath of MPS who have revealed intentions to step back, including longtime NDP MP Charlie Angus who told The Canadian Press this month that the federal boundary changes also contributed to his, and two other NDP MPS, decision to leave politics.