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Meadow Lake has been a constituency in provincial politics for decades. However the boundaries for this constituency dramatically changed for the 2003 provincial election, away from the Alberta border. The winning MLA for Meadow Lake in 2003 was Maynard Sonntag, a senior cabinet minister in the NDP Government who was first elected in the old Meadow Lake constituency in 1991. Sonntag held several different cabinet positions in the Romanow and Calvert Governments, including Energy and Mines and the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority. In 2007, Sonntag lost by 17 votes to former Conservative MP Jeremy Harrison. Therefore, Meadow Lake is one of the most fierce battlegrounds in this election.
Harrison is Minister of Municipal Affairs in the Wall Government. His main opponent this time is Helen Ben of the NDP. There will be no Liberal candidate, so the 3 percent that the Liberals won last type gives Harrison a 3 percent lead off the NDP this time around. If the provincial momentum associated with Premier Wall carries over into Meadow Lake constituency, then Harrison shouldn't have any trouble being re-elected. But the NDP have a lot invested in this contest, and they are determind not to give up without a fight. If there is one seat in this election that the NDP could wrestle away from the Sask Party, it would be Meadow Lake. The problem for the NDP is that all of the Aboriginal voters in Meadow Lake already voted NDP in 2007, and the only new ones to add to that list are ones who turned 18 within the past 4 years, minus those who died recently. In conclusion, it is likely that the momentum behind the SaskParty and against the NDP will work in Harrison's favour this time. Expect Harrison to win tomorrow with a margin of 500 to 1,000 votes.
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