Editing Saskatchewan (section)

== Government and politics ==
{{Main|Politics of Saskatchewan}}
[[File:Saskatchewan Legislative Building Front.JPG|thumb|The [[Saskatchewan Legislative Building]] is the meeting place for the province's [[Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan|legislative assembly]].]]
Saskatchewan has the same form of government<ref>{{cite web |title=official page |url=http://www.gov.sk.ca |author=Government of Saskatchewan |website=gov.sk |access-date=February 15, 2007 |archive-date=February 24, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110224091453/http://gov.sk.ca/ }}</ref> as the other Canadian provinces with a [[Lieutenant-Governor (Canada)|lieutenant-governor]] (who is the representative of the [[Monarchy in Saskatchewan|King in Right of Saskatchewan]]), [[premier]], and a unicameral [[legislature]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.solon.org/Constitutions/Canada/English/sa_1905.html |title=The ''Saskatchewan Act'', SC 1905, c. 42, s. 12 defines the Legislature: "12. There shall be a Legislature for the said province consisting of the Lieutenant Governor and one House, to be styled the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan." |access-date=July 10, 2021 |archive-date=September 27, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200927174422/https://www.solon.org/Constitutions/Canada/English/sa_1905.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

During the 20th century, Saskatchewan was one of Canada's more left-wing provinces, reflecting the slant of its many rural citizens which distrusted the distant capital government and which favoured a strong local government to attend to their issues. In 1944 [[Tommy Douglas]] became premier of the first avowedly [[socialism|socialist]] regional government in North America. Most of his [[Members of the Legislative Assembly]] (MLAs) represented rural and small-town ridings. Under his [[Cooperative Commonwealth Federation]] government, Saskatchewan became the first province to have [[Medicare (Canada)|Medicare]]. In 1961, Douglas left provincial politics to become the first leader of the federal [[New Democratic Party (Canada)|New Democratic Party]]. In the 21st century, Saskatchewan began to drift to the right-wing, generally attributed to the [[Petroleum industry in Canada#Saskatchewan|province's economy shifting toward oil and gas production]]. In the [[2015 Canadian federal election|2015 federal election]], the [[Conservative Party of Canada]] won ten of the province's fourteen seats, followed by the [[New Democratic Party]] with three and the [[Liberal Party of Canada]] with one; in the [[2019 Canadian federal election|2019 election]], the Conservatives won in all of Saskatchewan's 14 seats, sweeping their competition, and retained them all in the [[2021 Canadian federal election|2021 election]].

Provincial politics in Saskatchewan is dominated by the [[social democracy|social-democratic]] [[Saskatchewan New Democratic Party]] and the centre-right [[Saskatchewan Party]], with the latter holding the majority in the [[Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan]] since [[2007 Saskatchewan general election|2007]]. The current [[Premier of Saskatchewan]] is [[Scott Moe]], who took over the leadership of the Saskatchewan Party in [[2018 Saskatchewan Party leadership election|2018]] following the resignation of [[Brad Wall]]. Numerous smaller political parties also run candidates in provincial elections, including the [[Green Party of Saskatchewan]], [[Buffalo Party of Saskatchewan]], [[Saskatchewan Progress Party]], and the [[Progressive Conservative Party of Saskatchewan]], but none is currently represented in the Legislative Assembly.

No [[Prime Minister of Canada]] has been born in Saskatchewan, but two ([[William Lyon Mackenzie King]] and [[John Diefenbaker]]) represented the province in the [[House of Commons of Canada]] during their tenures as head of government.

=== Administrative divisions ===

{{See also|List of rural municipalities in Saskatchewan|List of municipalities in Saskatchewan}}

[[File:Saskatchewan Municipalities.png|thumb|250px|alt=Map of urban, rural and northern municipalities in Saskatchewan as of 2013|Distribution of Saskatchewan's 466 urban, 296 rural and 24 northern municipalities (2013)]]

Below the provincial level of government, Saskatchewan is divided into urban and rural municipalities. The Government of Saskatchewan's Ministry of Municipal Relations recognizes three general types of municipalities and seven sub-types – urban municipalities ([[City|cities]], [[town]]s, [[village]]s and [[resort village]]s), [[Rural municipality|rural municipalities]] and northern municipalities (northern towns, northern villages and northern hamlets).<ref name=munitypes>{{cite web |url=https://www.saskatchewan.ca/government/government-structure/local-federal-and-other-governments/your-local-government/about-the-saskatchewan-municipal-system#types-of-municipalities |title=Types of Municipalities |publisher=Saskatchewan Ministry of Government Relations |access-date=June 7, 2020 |archive-date=October 18, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211018131932/https://www.saskatchewan.ca/government/government-structure/local-federal-and-other-governments/your-local-government/about-the-saskatchewan-municipal-system#types-of-municipalities |url-status=live }}</ref> The vast majority of the land mass of Northern Saskatchewan is within the unorganized [[Northern Saskatchewan Administration District]]. Cities are formed under the provincial authority of ''The Cities Act'', which was enacted in 2002.<ref name=CityAct>{{cite web |url=http://www.qp.gov.sk.ca/documents/english/Statutes/Statutes/c11-1.pdf |title=The Cities Act |publisher=Government of Saskatchewan |type=[[PDF]] |pages=9, 32 and 34 |access-date=December 17, 2012 |archive-date=July 24, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130724005218/http://www.qp.gov.sk.ca/documents/english/Statutes/Statutes/c11-1.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> Towns, villages, resort villages and rural municipalities are formed under the authority of ''The Municipalities Act'', enacted in 2005.<ref name=MuniAct>{{cite web |url=http://www.qp.gov.sk.ca/documents/English/Statutes/Statutes/M36-1.pdf |title=The Municipalities Act |publisher=Government of Saskatchewan |type=PDF |pages=11 and 45&nbsp;46 |access-date=December 12, 2012 |archive-date=January 17, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190117034837/http://www.qp.gov.sk.ca/documents/English/Statutes/Statutes/M36-1.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> The three sub-types of northern municipalities are formed under the authority of ''The Northern Municipalities Act'', enacted in 2010.<ref name=NorthMuniAct>{{cite web |url=http://www.qp.gov.sk.ca/documents/English/Statutes/Repealed/N5-1.pdf |publisher=Saskatchewan Queen's Printer |title=The Northern Municipalities Act |type=PDF |pages=9 and 15&nbsp;16 |access-date=February 9, 2008 |archive-date=December 5, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211205191713/https://pubsaskdev.blob.core.windows.net/pubsask-prod/archived/1116/N5-1.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2016, Saskatchewan's 774 [[municipality|municipalities]] covered {{percentage|309906.95|588244|1}} of the province's land mass and were home to {{percentage|1041527|1098352|1}} of its population.<ref name="munitypes" /><ref name=2016StatCanSK>{{cite web |url=http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/hlt-fst/pd-pl/Table.cfm?Lang=Eng&T=302&SR=1&S=86&O=A&RPP=9999&PR=12 |title=Population and dwelling counts, for Canada, provinces and territories, and census subdivisions (municipalities), 2016 and 2011 censuses – 100% data (Saskatchewan) |publisher=[[Statistics Canada]] |date=February 8, 2017 |access-date=April 14, 2017 |archive-date=February 12, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170212091116/http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/hlt-fst/pd-pl/Table.cfm?Lang=Eng&T=302&SR=1&S=86&O=A&RPP=9999&PR=12 |url-status=live }}</ref>{{#tag:ref|The remaining {{percentage|56825|1098352|1}} of Saskatchewan's population resides on [[Indian reserve]]s, [[Indian settlement]]s, the vast unincorporated portions of the [[Northern Saskatchewan Administration District]] and [[Prince Albert National Park]]. Together, they occupy the remaining {{percentage|278337.05|588244|1}} of the province's land mass.<ref name=2016StatCanSK />|group=lower-alpha}}

These 774 municipalities are [[local government]] "creatures of provincial jurisdiction" with [[legal person|legal personhood]].<ref name=munisystem>{{cite web |url=http://www.municipal.gov.sk.ca/Programs-Services/municipal-system-information/ |title=Municipal System – History and Types |publisher=Saskatchewan Municipal Relations |access-date=December 4, 2013 |archive-date=October 19, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131019150516/http://www.municipal.gov.sk.ca/Programs-Services/municipal-system-information/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> One of the key purposes of Saskatchewan's municipalities are "to provide services, facilities and other things that, in the opinion of council, are necessary or desirable for all or a part of the municipality".<ref name="munisystem" /> Other purposes are to: "provide good government"; "develop and maintain a safe and viable community"; "foster economic, social and environmental well-being" and "provide wise stewardship of public assets."<ref name="munisystem" />