Saskatchewan Party

The Saskatchewan Party is a conservative political party in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. Since 2007, it has been the governing party of the province. The party was established in 1997 by a coalition of former provincial Progressive Conservative and Liberal party members and supporters who sought to remove the Saskatchewan New Democratic Party (NDP) from power.

The Saskatchewan Party served as the province's Official Opposition until the provincial election on November 7, 2007. The Saskatchewan Party won 38 seats in the Legislative Assembly, and leader Brad Wall was sworn in as the province's 14th Premier on November 21, 2007. During the November 7, 2011 general election, the party won a landslide victory, winning 49 of 58 seats – the third largest majority government in Saskatchewan's history.

Origins of the party and political basis

Historically, Saskatchewan politics has tended towards a two-party system, with third parties enjoying limited political success. For the first 25 years of the province's existence, political power was split between the Saskatchewan Liberal Party in government, and the Conservatives (initially the Provincial Rights Party) in opposition. The emergence of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF), forerunner of the NDP – a social democratic political party formed by the coming together of various socialist, agrarian and labour groups under a united front – forced the Liberals to the right. As a result of vote-splitting with the Liberals, the less popular Tories gradually lost ground in the Legislative Assembly, and were completely shut out of the chamber for all but one term from 1934 to 1975.