Saskatchewan Party - Donna Harpauer
Donna Harpauer was first elected in 1999 as the Saskatchewan MLA for Watrous. Since the boundary redistribution in the 2003 election, Harpauer has been happy to represent the people of Humboldt as their MLA. She is also a resident of Humboldt.
Prosperity is something that the province has enjoyed for a number of years, says Harpauer, and she wants that to continue with the Saskatchewan Party.
“The government has been able to invest the dividends of that prosperity to improve education and healthcare within our province and also to write down the debt.”With potash and oil prices being down, this election is going to be about the economy and which party is going to be able to keep the province strong, says Harpauer.
It’s all about moving the province forward, she says, and for Saskatchewan that means 3000 more nurses of every designation, more doctors, a brand new hospital and high school in Humboldt, a nursing home in Watrous, and more daycare spaces and renovations to the Lanigan School.
This is where the money went, says Harpauer.
“That’s the dividends of prosperity and that’s why the economy is so strong.”
All of these new investments in Saskatchewan communities has made them the best place to raise families, says Harpauer.
The Saskatchewan Party promises to keep taxes in line, stimulating investments in Saskatchewan, and keeping the population growing.
“We don’t think that crazy spending when you don’t have any idea of how you’re going to pay for it is the answer for our province.”
Being raised just south of Humboldt, Harpauer is very passionate about the Humboldt area, she says.
When it comes to Saskatchewan, this election is about the future of Harpauer’s three daughters, who thankfully still live in the province, she says, and other young people.
“I’d much rather answer the question of where did the money go, than where did our kids go.”
Harpauer says that Saskatchewan is no longer hearing the jokes about everyone leaving the province. Saskatchewan is now a have province.
Adam Duke - New Democratic Party
Political Science caught Adam Duke’s eye when he was going school to become a high school teacher. The chance to represent people and have a voice at the table really appealed to Duke.
“There was an opportunity there to make change the same way I thought with teaching.”
Whatever comes up in Humboldt and area, Duke wants constituents to know that he will make noise and put the work in for them.
Honesty, availability and accountability are all things that Duke says he wants to bring to politics because they are not traits constituents see much anymore.
Consulting those involved is also something that Duke sees as an important aspect of politics.
“If I’m going to do something with education, I better be talking to teachers and educational assistants. If it’s something with seniors care, I should be talking to the families, nurses, and care aids.”
He is here to listen, says Duke, and he wants to tackle Saskatchewan issues with a bottom up approach instead of having people look at the issues from the top.
Duke says there is no reason for the government to raise taxes and he wants to look at ways of making life more affordable in Saskatchewan.
“Power rates since 2007 have gone up 35 per cent. These are the average day to day life things that are pricing people out of being able to upgrade to a new house.”
Cost of living is something that is affecting seniors that are on fixed incomes or who need to find ways to subsidize their pensions because they do not have enough to live on.
Instead of initiatives like smart meters, Lean or carbon capture, Duke says the government has to look into investing in people with their crown corporations.
“Let’s make sure people get a fair rate on their crown services so life is a little more affordable.”
With more money in people’s pockets they can invest it back in local businesses or invest in their livelihoods, says Duke.
Robert Tutka - Liberal Party of Saskatchewan
If Liberal Candidate, Robert Tutka, could use one phrase to describe himself, it would be just a common guy, which is something that he thinks is missing from politics.
That’s what drove him to be a candidate in the coming election.
“With my knowledge and everything that I’ve gained throughout the years, I figured it would be something that was missing from politics is the actual workers perspective on the ground.”
The main reason Tutka is running is to bring issues to the forefront of the discussion that he is passionate about.
Being a trucker, Tutka has been on many roads in Saskatchewan and highway and infrastructure repair projects are something he wants to see through.
Looking at things from a truck drivers perspective, weight restrictions in Saskatchewan is something that the government should take a second look at.
“Sixty three five is a high weight limit which is pounding on the our roads.”
But Tutka does not want to push his own agenda, he says, he wants to listen to the people and what they want for the area.
“If I can show that the common person actually has a role in government, instead of people brushing it off, saying I don’t like this policy so I’m not going to vote...I want to show people that they can.”
Tutka knows he is not an expert in the healthcare field but many different health care issues have been brought to his attention while he is on the road talking to constituents; including high costs for ambulances.
Tutka would also like to see the film tax credit being brought back.
“Yes, we would be paying a little more but if we bring that business back in the province, showcase what we have, we can expand that.”
Those beautiful sunsets and sunrises that Tutka has seen in his life as a truck driver, he wants to make sure those get shown off to the rest of the country, as well as the great talent and production companies from across the province.
Green energy is also an important project for Tutka but the province has to ease into it. We cannot just cut it out completely. It has to be a smooth transition, says Tutka.
Lori Harper - Green Party
Running for the Green Party in Humboldt/Watrous is Lori Harper. According to the Green Party of Saskatchewan website, Harper is currently raising four of her seven grandsons and was not available for an interview.
Ron Schriml spoke on her behalf.
Schriml says that no one runs as a member of the Green Party expecting to be elected in Saskatchewan in the year 2016.
However, the Green Party still has candidates in 57 ridings because they want to raise awareness on important Saskatchewan issues, especially the economy and the environment.
“The other three parties, there is not much difference between them in terms of how they’re going to manage a faltering economy or a limited environment.”
Until there is massive change in Saskatchewan politics, the Green Party will not be elected, but they still can bring other viewpoints to the discussion, says Schriml.
The financial bust period is an economic issue that is hitting the Humboldt area hard with drops in potash and oil revenues.
“How fast the (bounce back) is going to be depends on whether we continue to get good crops and the market holds but both of those are pretty iffy,” says Schriml.
Saskatchewan markets have a great deal of dependence on outside markets. The Green Party wants the government to have a serious look at how this dependence is affecting Saskatchewan people.
“We’d like to see the government do something about trying to reduce our dependency on export/import revenue and prepare people for the possibilities of losing their assets...as the economy starts to falter.”
There are problems with how much we are exploiting the soils and minerals through some of our farming practices, says Schriml, which is not a sustainable practice. Costs are increasing when we have to supplement lost nutrients and eventually we will not be able to afford the amounts of potash we need to continue these practices, says Schriml.
A more local economy would be more sustainable.
“If we’d be able to grow food for ourselves instead of exporting it and create local employment so income could be distributed a little better.”
