REGINA - The 12 provincial ridings in the city of Regina will be closely watched by political observers on election night.
The races in the provincial capital are expected to be competitive, with both the Saskatchewan Party and the NDP looking to take seats away from each other in this election.
In 2020, the Saskatchewan Party took seven of the seats in Regina en route to a massive majority government, while the New Democrats took five.
The city also produced three of the closest results in the entire province in 2020: in Regina Pasqua, the Sask Party’s Muhammad Fiaz beat the NDP’s Bhajan Brar by 256 votes. In Regina Coronation Park, the Sask Party’s Mark Docherty beat the NDP’s Noor Burki by 283 votes. And in Regina University the NDP’s Aleana Young beat Sask Party incumbent Tina Beaudry-Mellor by 342 votes.
2024 could see Regina once again produce the province’s closest races although the riding boundaries have shifted significantly, and in some cases have been totally renamed. Voters are urged to doublecheck to know which riding they are voting in in this election.
Here is a look at Regina’s 12 ridings and the candidates in each one of them as of Oct. 10:
Regina Pasqua: This will feature a rematch between SaskParty incumbent Muhammad Fiaz, and the NDP’s Bhajan Brar. Also on the ballot are Shannon Chapple of the Buffalo Party, Ektineras Cablys of the Green Party, and Justin Parnell of the PC Party. The boundaries have shifted considerably to the west for Regina Pasqua which includes the rapidly growing Harbour Landing area of the city.
Regina South Albert: With a background as a small business owner, NDP incumbent Aleana Young is seeking re-election in this newly named riding, which includes portions of the old Regina University and Regina Pasqua ridings. Her opponents are Khushdil (Lucky) Mehrok of the Sask Party, Leonie Williams of the Green Party and David Teece of the PCs.
Regina University: The boundaries of Regina University have shifted considerably to the east to now include much of the old Gardiner Park riding. The Sask Party’s Gene Makowsky, former star player with the Saskatchewan Roughriders who has been Minister of Social Services, had represented Gardiner Park and is seeking re-election in the new riding. This time, his seat is seen as a target of the NDP. His main challenge is expected to come from the NDP’s Sally Housser, a prominent political commentator and public affairs professional who has worked previously with NDP governments. Cedar Park is running for the Green Party and Corie Rempel is running for the PCs.
Regina Wascana Plains: Located to the east of Regina University, the area has long been the strongest area of Regina for the Saskatchewan Party. The current Minister of Environment Christine Tell is the incumbent and is seeking re-election, facing off against Brent Blakley of the NDP, Dustin Plett of the Saskatchewan United Party, Bo Chen of the Green Party, and Larry Buchinski of the PC party.
Regina Douglas Park: NDP’s justice critic Nicole Sarauer is seeking a third term in Regina Douglas Park, a seat that has long been an NDP stronghold in Regina. The former PC leader Ken Grey has switched over to run for the Saskatchewan Party in this seat. Former Green Party leader Victor Lau is the Green candidate. In fact, this could be seen as a battle of the "former leaders" as Sarauer herself was once interim leader for the NDP. This is the seat that was at one point in time represented by former NDP leader Dwain Lingenfelter before losing in 2011 to the Saskatchewan Party, but Sarauer and the NDP took it back and Sarauer has held the seat since 2016.
Regina Northeast: This seat is the only one in Regina without an incumbent running in 2024, with the Sask Party’s Gary Grewal departing after one term. Rahul Singh is running for the Saskatchewan Party, Jacqueline Roy is running for the NDP, Anthony Majore is running for the Green Party, Fawaz Adegoke is running for the PCs, and Kate Tremblay is running for the Saskatchewan Progress Party. While it has been held by the Saskatchewan Party in recent elections, including for a time by former Sask Party finance minister Kevin Doherty, this time the seat is considered an NDP target. The seat was also held briefly by Yens Pedersen of the NDP following a byelection win, only to lose the seat to Grewal in 2020.
Regina Coronation Park: Moving to the west, Regina Coronation Park routinely produced some of the closest results in the city when Mark Docherty, former Speaker of the Legislature, was the MLA for the Sask Party. But the riding swung to the NDP in a 2023 by-election following Docherty’s resignation. This year’s race will see a rematch of the by-election with the NDP’s Noor Burki seeking to keep his seat against Sask Party challenger Riaz Ahmad. Maria Krznar is running for the Green Party while Olasehinde Ben Adebayo is running for the PCs.
Regina Walsh Acres: Held in recent years by Sask Party MLAs including Warren Steinley, now Conservative MP for Regina Lewvan, and more recently by prominent sportscaster Derek Meyers who died of cancer in 2023, this seat also flipped to the NDP in the 2023 byelections. The NDP’s Jared Clarke is seeking re-election to a full term running against Liaqat Ali of the Saskatchewan Party and Dianna Holigriski of the Green Party.
Regina Rochdale: Further to the northwest is Regina Rochdale which has been held by Laura Ross, current Minister of Parks, Culture and Sport. Ross is seeking a fifth term in the Legislature and faces a challenge from Joan Pratcher of the NDP and Irene Browatzke of the Green Party.
Regina Mount Royal: This is a new riding located with boundaries shifted further to the west than where the former Regina Rosemont riding was located. NDP Finance Critic and longtime MLA Trent Wotherspoon had held Regina Rosemont and is seeking re-election in Mount Royal for what would be his fifth term in the Legislature. His challengers are Jaspreet Mander of the Sask Party, and Regina Demyen of the Green Party.
Regina Elphinstone-Centre: This has long been a bedrock NDP seat that at one point was held by former Premier Allan Blakeney. The current NDP social services and ethics and democracy critic Meara Conway is seeking a second term, facing Caesar Khan of the Saskatchewan Party and Pamela Carpenter of the Saskatchewan United Party. Jim Elliott, a former mayoral candidate in Regina and a frequent presence at Regina city hall meetings, is running for the Green Party.
Regina Lakeview: Finally, the challengers in Regina Lakeview face a steep climb in trying to unseat Carla Beck, leader of the NDP who is seeking her third term representing the longtime NDP stronghold. Running against her is Sarah Wright of the Saskatchewan Party, Heather MacNeill of the Green Party and Victor Teece of the PCs.
