Jul 27, 2022
July 27, 2022 – The Commission reviewing Saskatchewan’s provincial electoral boundaries today released its interim report that includes proposed new constituency boundaries.
Under The Constituency Boundaries Act, 1993, the Saskatchewan Constituency Boundaries Commission is mandated to recommend boundaries for Saskatchewan’s 59 southern constituencies. The process started April 27, 2022, when the Commission members were appointed. On that day, the demographic data from the 2021 Census was released by Statistics Canada to the Commission.
The report can be found at www.saskboundaries.ca. It will also be available at local public libraries.
The next step in this review includes eight public hearings in September and one virtual hearing where the public is welcome to provide input. Following the hearings, the Commission will submit final recommendations to the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan by October 31, 2022. This final report will form the basis of legislation to enact the new boundaries, effective at the time of the next provincial election, scheduled by legislation for October 28, 2024.
The Commission consists of a chairperson nominated by the Chief Justice of Saskatchewan, one person nominated by the government and one person nominated by the Leader of the Opposition. Members are Justice Donald Layh (chairperson), Joe Donlevy, former Chief of Staff to the Premier, and Frank Quennell, former Minister of Justice.
The Commission is guided in its work by the principle that every vote should bear an equal value to the extent practical, subject to those variations considered necessary because of sparsity, density, or relative rates of growth; accessibility, size, shape, or physical features of regions; or special communities or diversities of interest, as permitted by the governing legislation.
A Saskatchewan provincial constituency, also known as a riding or electoral district, is a geographical area represented by a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA). Electors vote for an MLA to represent the residents of their constituency in the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan. Each constituency therefore corresponds to a seat in the Saskatchewan Legislative Assembly. Currently, Saskatchewan has 61 provincial constituencies.
For more information contact:
Saskatchewan Constituency Boundaries Commission
Phone: 1-833-421-3424
Email: [email protected]