NDP’s Wab Kinew wins Manitoba provincial election, becomes Canada’s first Indigenous premier

CityNews is projecting the Manitoba New Democrats will win the most seats in the provincial election.

Leader Wab Kinew, who won his seat in Fort Rouge, will become the first First Nations premier to lead a province in Canada’s history.

The NDP, which will govern Manitoba for the first time since 2016, ended Heather Stefanson and the incumbent Progressive Conservatives’ bid for a third straight majority.

While it was unclear if she would win her seat, Stefanson said she would step down as party leader. Manitoba Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont stepped down earlier in the night after losing his seat in St. Boniface.

The New Democrats earned the historic victory by flipping seats previously held by the PCs in the key battleground of Winnipeg.

Kinew’s popularity grew steadily in the polls in the months leading up to the election, and the Manitoba NDP led in opinion polls throughout the four-week election campaign.

Before the campaign began, the NDP held 18 seats in the Manitoba legislature – half of the 36 seats held by the PCs.

Kinew ran heavily on health care, promising to reopen three emergency rooms in Winnipeg and hire hundreds of more doctors, nurses and paramedics.

The Manitoba NDP also promised to temporarily cut the gas tax and freeze hydro rates for Manitobans for a year.

Manitoba NDP Health Promises:

• More hospital beds will ease strain on emergency rooms, Manitoba NDP leader says

• Health care funding and COVID-19 inquiry among NDP election platform items

• Allied health workers union endorses Manitoba New Democrats’ campaign plan

What turned into a major talking point in the final days of the campaign – though it’s unclear what impact it had on Kinew’s victory – was the debate surrounding a landfill search for the remains of Indigenous women.

The search of Prairie Green for Marcedes Myran and Morgan Harris is estimated to cost $184 million over three years. Kinew, who believes it could cost a fraction of that, vowed to search the landfill if elected.

Stefanson’s Tories took a different approach, buying newspaper advertisements and large billboards opposing the landfill dig due to safety concerns over asbestos and other toxic materials that pose a cancer risk. Stefanson defended the ads, which were met with criticism.

Whatever the reasons, it was clear Manitobans were looking for change. And they found that in Kinew.

The 41-year-old was born in Ontario and lived on the Onigaming First Nation as a young boy. His late father was a residential school survivor.

The former CBC host was elected in the Winnipeg riding of Fort Rouge in 2016. The following year, he launched a successful bid for NDP leader.

Six years later, he becomes the first First Nations provincial leader in Canada.

“My goal in politics has never been to be a First Nations premier,” Kinew told CityNews during the campaign. “My goal is to be the best premier of Manitoba because that’s what the people of this province deserve. They deserve the highest quality of leadership.”

John Norquay was the first Indigenous person to serve as Manitoba’s premier. Norquay, who was Metis, was the province’s fifth premier until 1887.

—With files from The Canadian Press