Scott Moe receives more than 80 per cent approval at Sask. Party convention

SASKATOON — Premier Scott Moe received healthy support from members at the Saskatchewan Party’s convention Saturday despite his dismal performance in the province’s two major cities in the last election.

At the party’s convention at TCU Place in downtown Saskatoon, hundreds of its members voted in a leadership review that resulted in more than 80 per cent support for Moe to retain his position.

The last time the Saskatchewan Party held a leadership review in 2023, Moe got an approval rating of 97 per cent, but an exact percentage wasn’t provided this year.

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Before the vote, he told the crowd he’s owning up to losses from the last election.

“It was a step backwards for us and a step backwards for the Saskatchewan Party. For that, I take responsibility,” he said.

“I was the face of the campaign and we didn’t always get it right.”

Earning back those seats, according to Moe, will involve improving on how the party engages with people. That includes letting them know how their lives are being impacted by government decisions, instead of waiting for an election campaign to do that.

“A touch more humility isn’t a bad thing either,” he added.

Moe won a fifth-straight majority in 2024 but was swept out of Regina and held on to only one Saskatoon riding. His government has 34 seats in the legislature while the Opposition NDP has 27.

Political watchers have said the Saskatchewan Party lost the cities due to growing issues of overcrowded classrooms and hospitals.

Party members have also said they were disappointed in the election results and have urged Moe to do better on addressing urban issues.

An “Earn Regina Back” button handed out at the Sask. Party convention in Saskatoon on Nov. 8, 2025. (Marija Robinson/650 CKOM)

At the convention, members were passing around buttons that read “Earn Saskatoon Back” and “Earn Regina Back.”

Moe told the gathering the party need to refocus, organize and do better.

He also focused on the importance of elections, saying how the stability of an 18-year government matters more now than ever because a change in leadership could fundamentally alter the course of the province.

“Imagine if the NDP win an election,” Moe said, listing off to the crowd all the reasons why it would be bad for areas like community safety, housing, and affordability.

In comparison, he pointed out how the results of almost two decades under Saskatchewan Party governance have left the province with the second lowest unemployment rate in the country and second highest GDP growth in Canada.

“If that’s the choice that we have to offer in the next election, I like our chances,” he said about winning for a sixth consecutive term.

Potential candidates for the next election can start seeking their nominations early next year, a move he said will get them acquainted with the public sooner.

“This is not the time for any of us in this room or in this province to in any way become complacent,” Moe said. “We cannot afford to take anything for granted as we move forward.”

In what Sask. Party Leader Scott Moe said was the largest convention the party had hosted in its history on Nov. 8, 2025, he admitted to feeling “good” about the leadership review vote. (Marija Robinson/650 CKOM)

Moe also plans on running as leader in the next election.

“I will never, ever take that support for granted,” he said.

Keynote speaker Ben Mulroney said he doesn’t envy the Premier’s responsibility “of needing to be an effective advocate for this province and its people in front of the power brokers in Ottawa,” but if anyone can do the job, it’s Moe.

For Mulroney, it should give every Canadian comfort to know that if there’s a path to successfully lifting tariffs on Saskatchewan products, that will be done by Moe and the Saskatchewan Party.

Asked by a delegate about poor performance in the major cities, Moe said members are going to have to find areas where they can agree.

He said the party’s founding legislature members, four Liberals and four Progressive Conservatives, came together to form the Saskatchewan Party in 1997.

“They realized that in order for us to win, we’re going to have to bite our tongue just a little bit at times, or we can go back to being in opposition,” he said. “I think that’s a good reminder for us.”

Members also passed a motion that strips voting powers from permanent residents and youth. Now, only Canadian adult citizens can vote on party matters.

They also elected Joe Hargrave as the new president of the party. Hargrave, a former legislature member who did not seek reelection, served as a cabinet minister in Moe’s last government.

— with files from Marija Robinson, 650 CKOM

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The next leadership review will happen during the party’s next convention, which will be held in 2027. With the next provincial election planned for 2028, it means there will be another chance for members to weigh in on Moe as leader before the rest of the Saskatchewan.