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Yukon’s premier said he’s excited about the group of candidates he has running in the upcoming territorial election, despite the fact that no incumbent ministers are seeking re-election.
Mike Pemberton said he applauds his out-going colleagues for the work that they did during two terms with the Liberal government, and said the new crop of candidates offers experience even if they’re not veteran political candidates.
“I would say that the candidates that we’ve announced so far have fairly strong name recognition in the community. Maybe not as politicals, but with NGOs, with different First Nations, so name recognition is not the issue,” he said.
“If people do not know their names now, they will know their names by election day.”
Speaker Jeremy Harper is the only sitting Liberal MLA who will be trying to get back his seat in the Yukon legislature when voters go to the polls in the election that must be held by Nov. 3.
The Liberals have been in power since 2016 and were elected to a minority government in 2021, with eight of the 19 seats in the legislature.
In an interview Thursday, Pemberton said his party is “very close to 50 per cent” of the way to finding candidates for the 21 ridings that will be up for grabs this time around, and more candidates will be announced soon.
The caucus has gone through several leaders over the last few years, starting when former premier Sandy Silver stepped down in 2022 and announced he would not seek re-election.
Ranj Pillai was acclaimed into the premier’s chair in 2023 but stepped down this year to be replaced by Pemberton, who does not have a seat.
The seven ministers who will exit the legislature were all elected in a surge in Liberal support in 2016 that saw the party go from holding only one seat to a majority government.
Pemberton said the party has started a “campaign college” for candidates to learn about the party platform that will include a focus on key issues like housing and health care.
Yukon Energy Minister John Streicker said in an interview Thursday that his decision not to run for a third term was a personal one made after discussions with his wife.
He said each minister made the individual decision not to run again, and added that it wasn’t related to the change in the party’s leadership.
“We were just naturally coming to there as a group of individuals, and we’re all still working hard for the party now, and we believe in it,” he said.
“And I don’t want this to come across as some sort of abandonment. It’s more just this natural cycle that happens.”
Streicker said the government’s first term included challenges like the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and the second term included his office managing the environmental disaster at the Eagle Gold mine.
“A minority government just adds a lot of workload to everything, although I respect it as a choice of the public,” he said.
In 2024, Streicker’s home was vandalized with messages related to his handling of the pandemic, when he was minister of community services.
This year NDP Leader Kate White had her truck vandalized with threatening messages.
“It does feel like there is more and more polarization, and it makes it harder and harder to welcome people to step forward, to run,” Streicker said, though he added that the territory is not as partisan as other places.
A statement from Opposition Yukon Party media director Tim Kucharuk said the party is not surprised no ministers are seeking re-election.
“Regardless of what other parties are doing, the Yukon Party remains focused on connecting with Yukoners, preparing our platform, and putting together a strong team of candidates,” he said. “Whenever the election is called, we’ll be ready to offer the change that so many Yukoners are hoping for.”
Streicker said the vote represents a “change election” no matter who wins because the leaders of the Yukon Party and the NDP, like Pemberton, would also be first-time premiers if they win.
“It is my belief that it matters who the candidates are and what the platform is and how people do in debates. Of course, those things are important. And I think also there’s external things that are going to influence this, like U.S. politics,” he said.
“So do I think that there is an opportunity for us to win? Absolutely. Do I think that that’s a given? Absolutely not.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2025
Ashley Joannou, The Canadian Press
