Cameron Paul Broten (born April 29, 1978) is a
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
politician. He represented the constituency of
Saskatoon Massey Place in the
Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan
The Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan is the legislative chamber of the Saskatchewan Legislature in the province of Saskatchewan, Canada. Bills passed by the assembly are given royal assent by the Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan, in the na ...
from 2007 to 2016 and served as the leader of the
Saskatchewan New Democratic Party
The Saskatchewan New Democratic Party (NDP) is a social-democratic political party in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It currently forms the official opposition, but has been a dominant force in Saskatchewan politics since the 1940s. The p ...
from 2013 to 2016.
Early life and education
Broten was born in
Regina, Saskatchewan
Regina () is the capital city of the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The city is the second-largest in the province, after Saskatoon, and is a commercial centre for southern Saskatchewan. As of the 2021 census, Regina had a city populatio ...
in 1978 and spent his early years in the Northern Saskatchewan communities of
La Loche
La Loche () is a village in northwest Saskatchewan. It is located at the end of Highway 155 on the eastern shore of Lac La Loche in Canada's boreal forest. La Loche had a population of 2,827 in 2016 and is within the Northern Saskatchewan Admini ...
,
Green Lake,
Meadow Lake, and
La Ronge
La Ronge is a northern town in the boreal forest of central Saskatchewan, Canada. Its location is approximately north of Prince Albert where Highway 2 becomes Highway 102. La Ronge lies on the western shore of Lac la Ronge, is adjacent ...
before his family settled in
Saskatoon
Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Yellowhead Highway, and has served as th ...
. There he attended
Marion M. Graham Collegiate. He went on to earn a bachelor's degree in international studies from the
University of Saskatchewan
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, ...
and a master's degree in political science from
Simon Fraser University
Simon Fraser University (SFU) is a public research university in British Columbia, Canada, with three campuses, all in Greater Vancouver: Burnaby (main campus), Surrey, and Vancouver. The main Burnaby campus on Burnaby Mountain, located ...
.
He worked as a policy analyst with the provincial government, in the Department of Culture, Youth and Recreation, and later as a health policy manager with the Saskatchewan Medical Association.
He was also an elected board member with the Saskatoon Co-op.
Political career
MLA and NDP Leader
Broten was first elected to the
Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan
The Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan is the legislative chamber of the Saskatchewan Legislature in the province of Saskatchewan, Canada. Bills passed by the assembly are given royal assent by the Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan, in the na ...
in the
2007 provincial election as a member of the Saskatchewan NDP in the riding of
Saskatoon Massey Place. In that election, the NDP lost 10 seats and went from a majority government to the official opposition. In the
2011 provincial election, Broten was one of just 9 NDP MLAs elected as the party was reduced to its smallest presence in the legislature since 1982. Party leader
Dwain Lingenfelter
Dwain Lingenfelter (born February 27, 1949) is a businessman, farmer, politician and former Leader of the Saskatchewan New Democratic Party. Lingenfelter won the leadership of the Saskatchewan New Democratic Party on June 6, 2009. He resigne ...
lost his own seat and resigned following the election, triggering a leadership race that culminated in March 2013.
Broten announced his intention to run for the leadership in September 2012. He was one of four candidates alongside Saskatoon doctor
Ryan Meili
Ryan Meili (born April 11, 1975) is a Canadian physician and politician from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. He previously served as the MLA for Saskatoon Meewasin from 2017 to 2022 and as leader of the Saskatchewan New Democratic Party from 2018 to 2 ...
, Regina MLA
Trent Wotherspoon, and Regina economist
Erin Weir. Weir ultimately withdrew before the election and endorsed Meili, which led to a close three-way contest. Meili led on the first ballot by more than 400 votes, but on the second ballot Broten eked out a win by a margin of just 44 votes to become leader.
Following the election, Broten appointed Wotherspoon to be his deputy leader.
Despite the narrow victory in the leadership contest, Broten's popularity and support among the party grew quickly. In constitutionally-required party leadership review votes in 2014 and 2015 he received strong endorsements. At the 2014 NDP convention in
Moose Jaw
Moose Jaw is the fourth largest city in Saskatchewan, Canada. Lying on the Moose Jaw River in the south-central part of the province, it is situated on the Trans-Canada Highway, west of Regina. Residents of Moose Jaw are known as Moose Javian ...
he earned 98.7% of delegates' votes, while at the 2015 convention in Regina he received 98% of delegates' votes.
![Broten family](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7f/Broten_family.jpg)
During his leadership Broten focused on the issues of seniors care, better access and shorter wait times for health care, the elimination of high-cost ambulance fees, and a lower cost of living for families in the province. Broten also proposed caps on classrooms sizes, an increase in the number of educational assistants, and pushed for economic reforms including a new procurement policy and moving away from public-private-partnerships, which he argued ran up development costs while exporting benefits like jobs and profits to other jurisdictions. Broten also supported responsible resource development in Saskatchewan.
In Opposition, Broten put a particular emphasis on criticizing the governing
Saskatchewan Party's application of LEAN principles on the province's health care system. Broten also earned support from the majority government for his landmark private member's bill to create an asbestos registry for the province - known as ''Howard's Law'' - as well as measures to support local business. He also convinced the government to change its long-standing policy on Canada's Senate; Broten consistently supported abolishment of Canada's upper chamber.
2016 election and resignation
Broten led the NDP into the
2016 provincial election against a popular
Brad Wall
Bradley John Wall (born November 24, 1965), is a Canadian former politician who served as the 14th premier of Saskatchewan from November 21, 2007 until February 2, 2018. He is the fourth longest-tenured premier in the province's history. His so ...
and
Saskatchewan Party government. The NDP ultimately won just 10 seats, a gain of one from the previous election, and the Saskatchewan Party was elected to a third successive majority government. In addition, and in an echo of the 2011 election, Broten lost his own seat in the election. Broten's riding of Massey Place was reconfigured prior to the election, and so he ran in the new riding of
Saskatoon Westview. There he lost to Saskatchewan Party rookie candidate
David Buckingham by 232 votes.
The
Liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
candidate in the riding, Naveed Anwar, had previously run for the NDP in 2011 and had sought a nomination to run again for the party in 2016. However, he claimed to have been denied the opportunity to run in the riding of his choosing, and he opted to run for the Liberals instead, intending to undermine the NDP. He ultimately received 240 votes, 8 votes more than the margin between Buckingham and Broten.
Broten resigned as party leader following the election on April 11, 2016, and former leadership rival
Trent Wotherspoon was appointed interim party leader.
["Cam Broten steps down as Saskatchewan NDP leader"](_blank)
''CBC News'', April 11, 2016 Broten thus became only the second Saskatchewan
CCF/NDP leader since before the Second World War, following Lingenfelter, to have never served as premier.
Personal life
After resigning as NDP leader, Broten became the executive director of Saskatchewan Egg Producers, an industry marketing group.
In 2004 Broten married Ruth Megan Eliason, a
music therapist
Music therapy, an allied health profession, "is the clinical and evidence-based use of music interventions to accomplish individualized goals within a therapeutic relationship by a credentialed professional who has completed an approved music th ...
with Palliative Care Services in the
Saskatoon Health Region
The Saskatoon Health Region was the largest health region in Saskatchewan, Canada. Primarily based in the city of Saskatoon, the health region operated out of 75 facilities, including 10 hospitals, 29 long term care facilities, and numerous prim ...
who was raised on a family farm in the
Stewart Valley area near Swift Current. They live in Saskatoon with their four daughters. Their oldest child, a son was
born preterm in 2009 and died the same day.
Broten's grandfather,
Hans Broten
Hans Adolf Broten (August 12, 1916 – October 19, 1992) was a Canadian politician, who represented the electoral district of Watrous in the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan from 1960 to 1967. He was a member of the Cooperative Commonw ...
, served in the Legislative Assembly in the 1960s under
Tommy Douglas
Thomas Clement Douglas (20 October 1904 – 24 February 1986) was a Scottish-born Canadian politician who served as seventh premier of Saskatchewan from 1944 to 1961 and Leader of the New Democratic Party from 1961 to 1971. A Baptist min ...
and
Woodrow Lloyd
Woodrow Stanley Lloyd (July 16, 1913 – April 7, 1972) was a Canadian politician and educator. Born in Saskatchewan in 1913, he became a teacher in the early 1930s. He worked as a teacher and school principal until 1944 and was involved with ...
.
Electoral record
References
External links
Opposition Caucus Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Broten, Cam
1978 births
Living people
Canadian people of Norwegian descent
University of Saskatchewan alumni
Simon Fraser University alumni
Politicians from Regina, Saskatchewan
Politicians from Saskatoon
Saskatchewan New Democratic Party MLAs
Leaders of the Saskatchewan CCF/NDP
21st-century Canadian politicians