NDP's Aleana Young defeats Tina Beaudry-Mellor in Regina University, CBC Decision Desk projects
Bryan Eneas | CBC News | Posted: October 29, 2020 7:47 PM | Last Updated: October 29, 2020
Elections Saskatchewan counted mail-in ballots in the tight race on Thursday
The Saskatchewan NDP's Aleana Young will win the Regina University constituency, defeating Saskatchewan Party incumbent Tina Tina Beaudry-Mellor, CBC's Decision Desk projects.
The race had been too close to call on election night. Beaudry-Mellor held a 178 vote lead over Young prior to mail-in ballots being counted.
There were 1,814 mail-in ballots sent out to voters in the constituency. On Thursday, Elections Saskatchewan counted 1,371 of those ballots that were received by election day. After that count, Young leads Beaudry-Mellor by 226.
Any of the remaining 444 mail-in ballots from that riding that were mailed by election day, but not received by Elections Saskatchewan until after that, will be counted on Nov. 7.
Beaudry-Mellor, who represented the constituency for four years, conceded to Young in a social media post Thursday.
The Regina University riding saw Beaudry-Mellor contend against Young, the Progressive Conservative's Debbie Knill and the Green Party's Tanner Wallace.
At a news conference outside her home on Thursday, Young thanked her staffers and others who helped her during the campaign and said the day was just as exciting for them as it was for her.
She called the 444 outstanding ballots a question mark.
"I was anticipating, and I still am, that no results are really final until November 7," she said.
"The trends certainly look like they're going our way, but I guess we've still probably got another week here before anything is final."
Regina Pasqua still unsettled
Final results in the Regina Pasqua riding are still to come.
Sask. Party incumbent Muhammad Fiaz faced the NDP's Bhajan Brar, the Progressive Conservative Party's Harry Frank and the Green Party 's Heather Lau in the riding.
On Thursday, 1,871 of the 2,674 mail-in ballots distributed in the riding were counted.
As of 2:15 p.m. CST Thursday, Fiaz held a 386 vote lead over the NDP's Brar, with as many as 804 ballots left to be counted.
Elections Sask.'s final count, which will make the results from Monday's provincial election official, takes place on Nov. 7.