The former MLA for Moosomin, Steven Bonk, won the nomination to represent the Conservative Party of Canada in the riding of Souris-Moose Mountain when the next federal election is called.
Bonk went up against Torquay Mayor Mike Strachan for the nomination, a process that wasn’t without controversy as the two candidates were only given a tight, two-week window to get their nomination papers in and have the vote held after current MP, Dr. Robert Kitchen, announced he would not run when the election is called.
Kitchen said he will continue to serve as MP until that time.
For the vote, speeches and votes were held in three locations, in Moosomin on Friday, and in Estevan and Weyburn on Saturday, with the vote tally from all three locations counted after voting was done at the Weyburn Legion. The final vote tally was not provided to the members, only the result of the vote.
Following the announcement of the vote results by Kellie Sidloski, Strachan commented, “Conservatives are going to win this riding, and I’m happy to see a good Conservative win the nomination. I know it wasn’t me, but Steven will do a good job.”
For his part, Bonk said, “I’m extremely humbled to win this nomination. I want to thank my teammate, Mike Strachan. It was an honourable campaign, and he’s a good man, and I’m very happy with the way everything happened.”
He added his thanks to the Conservative members of Souris-Moose Mountain who voted for him, and said, “I will endeavour to represent them to the best of my ability at the next election.”
He noted to the members present for the vote results that Souris-Moose Mountain is one of the strongest Conservative areas in all of Canada, “and it’s important we export those values to the rest of Canada. We really are in need of that right now.”
Bonk also expressed his gratitude to Kitchen for serving this riding for the past nine years. “I know he sacrificed a lot, and he has the respect of everyone in this room.”
Just prior to the candidates’ speeches in Weyburn, longtime Conservative supporter Murray McGillivray voiced his displeasure with the short timeline for this vote, and said, “I am not happy with the way this has been set up.”
He pointed out that this kind of short window of time has never happened for this riding over the years, and he has been a member of the party for many years.
After the speeches, several members came up to thank him for voicing this concern over the process, telling him it needed to be said.
Bonk mentioned after the vote results that he and Strachan both had to scramble to get their names out to the constituents for the vote, and he knows it was a struggle for them both.
