Anti-abortion ex-MP, mayor among those vying for longtime Conservative Moose Jaw seat

Following MP Tom Lukiwski's announcement last month that he won't seek re-election for the Moose Jaw-Lake Centre-Lanigan riding, severalpeople including two high-profile candidates have said they intend to throwtheir hats into the ring to secure the federal Conservative nomination.

Lukiwski served two consecutive terms in the constituency, acting as its representative in the House of Commons since it was created ina redrawing of federal riding boundaries. The ridingincludes parts of several former ridings that have traditionally voted for conservative parties.

With a federal election widely expected to come this fall, those who have said they intend to viefor the Conservative nomination include newcomers Kathryn Pollack and Clark Dan Puckett.

Moose Jaw lawyer Talon Regent and Moose Jaw Pride spokesperson Erin Hidlebaugh also saythey'llseek the NDP nomination for the seat.

There are also high-profile potential candidates for the Conservative nomination: Moose Jaw Mayor Fraser Tolmie and former Conservative MP Brad Trost, who also ran for the federal party's leadership in 2017.

One Conservative political strategist sees the eagerness to seek the nomination as asign that afederal election is "right around the corner."

Jaime Watt, executive chairman of the crisis communications firm Navigator, says the person whowinsthe Conservative nominationis "pretty much guaranteed" to be the riding'snext MP,given the area's voting history.

However, Watt sees some problems ahead for the potential candidates and the party.

Brad Trost a 'gadfly': strategist

Watt says Trost's stance on certain issues would hurt the Conservative Party.

"Mr. Trost, I think he's been a bit of a gadfly," Watt said.

"His views are so extreme it's not helpful to the party. There's no question about it."

Trost is an outspoken opponent of abortion. He backs relaxing firearm regulations, wants the carbon tax repealed and wants more pipelinesbuilt.

Agriculture and western Canadian alienation are also top issues that Trost hopes to tackle.

Trostwas aConservative member of Parliament from 2004 to 2019 first in the Saskatoon-Humboldt riding, someof which later became part of the Moose Jaw-Lake Centre-Laniganriding, and then in the Saskatoon-University riding after the boundaries change.

He says he has begun driving across Moose Jaw, speaking to residents who have told him that they are "nostalgic" for Stephen Harper's Conservative government, which he was part of.

He lost the Conservative nominationfor the Saskatoon-University seat in 2018, ahead of the2019 federal election, butsays he's ready to make a comeback.

He alsoran in the national leadership race for the Conservative Party in 2017,finishing fourth.

'I'm very much a mainstream Conservative'

Abortion has long been one of the most contentioussocial issues for the Conservative Party but Trost says he doesn't believe his stance will cause too many rifts.

He said he spoke to Conservative Party Leader Erin O'Toole last fall, and"he indicated to me he would have no problem having me in the party."

In early June, a majority of Conservative MPs, including all 14 of Saskatchewan's members, voted in support of a bill that would ban doctors from performing an abortion based on the sex of a fetus.

"If you're a pro-life Conservative, you are part of the majority of the Conservatives in Saskatchewan," Trost said. "So I'm very much a mainstream Conservative in this province."

Like Trost, Moose Jaw Mayor Fraser Tolmiehas a political track record.

First elected mayor in 2016, hewas re-electedin 2020 and put Moose Jaw in the international spotlight by waging a competition against Stor-Elvdal, Norway, for bragging rights to the world's tallest moose statue.

Tolmie says entering federal politics is a natural next step into his career.

"The people in the West here want someone that knows how they feel and they want someone that's going to eliminate bureaucracy, which is something that I've done as well within our city hall," Tolmie said.

If he wins the nomination, he says he would stay on as mayor until the federal election is called.

Watt says Tolmie might also pose challenges for the Conservative Party, in particular its social conservative side.

"He is a more reasonable figure and a more reasonable carrier of those messages than Brad Trost," Watt said.

As Conservatives across the country start gearing up to challenge the governing Liberals in a potential upcoming election, Watt says the party should focus on its candidates.

"The more people they can get that are well-known, well-accomplished and representative of the mainstream of Canada, the better off that they'll be."