Three in Conservative candidacy race for Yorkton-Melville riding
Quinn Haider, Albert Duff, and Nelson Pohl in race to be next federal Conservative candidate; Nomination set for June 13
May 25, 2026, 9:59 am
Kara Kinna
Three people have put their name forward to be the next Conservative candidate in the Yorkton-Melville riding after Conservative MP Cathay Wagantall announced she won’t be running again in the next federal election.
Yorkton town councillor and school principal Quinn Haider has announced his bid for the candidacy, as has Albert Duff and Nelson Pohl.
The date for the nomination meeting has been set for Saturday, June 13. Voting will take place in both Yorkton and Pocupine Plain. In Porcupine Plain, candidate speeches will take place at 9:30 am, followed by voting from 10 am to noon at the Porcupine Plain Community Hall at 106 McAllister Avenue. In Yorkton, candidate speeches will be at 4:30 pm followed by voting from 5-7 pm at National Bank Convention Place, Gallagher Centre, 455 Broadway St. W.
In order to be eligible to vote for the candidate of their choice, voters must have purchased a federal Conservative Party membership by May 15.
Haider was the first to announce his candidacy. Haider has been a school teacher for 33 years, a school administrator since 2002 and a school principal for 16 years. He has also been a Yorkton City Councillor for 10 years, sitting on council since 2016.
Haider said in an interview with the World-Spectator after announcing his candidacy that affordability and federal debt are two things that he sees as issues for the Conservative party to tackle.
“Cost of living and the debt that our government has incurred would be two of the biggest things that I want to help change,” he said.
He also listed crime rates and Canada-U.S. relations as major issues.
Albert Duff is an IT worker who lives on a farm north of Melville. Duff also says affordability is one of the big issues he’s been hearing about in the riding.
“We grew up on the farm. We had hogs, and then went into dairy, and then dairy beef and grain, and then I bought my own farm afterwards,” he says. “I worked a couple years up in Stony Rapids and then worked for about 12 years at Harvest Meats, and I have worked with the provincial government now for a little over 16 years, and am currently a technical analyst in the IT department.
“I’ve been involved with politics since the Canadian Alliance. I was a financial agent for (former Yorkton-Melville MP) Gary Breitkreutz on the Canadian Alliance, and then during the merger between the Canadian Alliance and the Conservatives, I was a voting delegate in Montreal for that, and then I was on Gary’s board for president, vice-president, and financial agent for the Conservative Party for his term. And then I was on Cathay Wagantall’s board too for bit as a board member, and then a few years ago we dropped off just because of conflict of interest with work. So I have basically been involved with the Yorkton-Melville EDA for quite a few years.”
Why did he decide to run for the nomination?
“My wife and I have never been able to have kids, but I have quite a few nieces and nephews, so we figured we would see if we could improve the economy for future generations,” he says.
Duff says financial accountability and balancing the budgets is a concern of his as a Conservative candidate.
“As we’re running the budgets up, if the interest rates go up, the taxes are going to have to go up, and everybody that I’ve talked to has brought up affordability as their number one issue for the riding,” he says.
“I also used to trap and hunt and fish, so I would like to make sure that the hunting and fishing rights aren’t eroded. And I’d like to see a little better prosecution of criminals that are on the streets. There’s a number of them that are repeat criminal. I also attend Heritage Baptist Church, so I also do feel that the way MAID is going, it should be probably restricted a bit. Those are some of the main priorities.”
“I’d also like to see the agricultural trade get started negotiating with the States to open up more of the trade, because that’s a number one export area for Canada.”
Duff says he has been out and about in the riding putting up flyers, door knocking, calling, and emailing people as a way to reach out to them about his candidacy.
He says affordability is the top concern of most people he’s talked to.
“The number one thing has been affordability. The taxes are getting a little too high with the cost of food and everything. That’s the main one that’s been coming up. Some have brought up farming issues, because we are in an area with a lot of farmers, and another thing that has come up is the RCMP support.
“I think the main thing is we need somebody in there that will listen to what’s going on and focus on supporting the entire riding and community instead of just focusing on one part of it. I have family that lives in throughout Saskatchewan because I have eight siblings—there’s one in Manitoba, one in Alberta, and the rest are spread across Saskatchewan. So we see different communities. My wife is actually from the States, and she’s a dual citizen so we have constant contact with the U.S. as well, so we see both sides of the border issues. With my current job, I’ve been all across the province at different times.”
Candidate Nelson Pohl, a farmer and small business owner, says the timing was right for him to run for the candidacy.
“I live a little north of Yorkton, on a farm in between Springside and Ebenezer,” he says. “I’ve been a lifelong farmer, and I am also a small business owner. I have owned a furnace and duct cleaning business for over 15 years. I have two teenage daughters and I’m married.
“Having two daughters, growing up watching the condition this country has gone into, and the erosion of our freedoms that is happening, and just listening over the years to hundreds and hundreds of customers at their kitchen tables talking about their issues, whether it’s if they’re farm families, or the big one is the transferring of farms to families, it’s getting very difficult to do that with the capital gains and inheritance taxes.
“Just listening to the affordability problems that people are having, it’s very real, and on a personal level, it’s just being able to say I tried my best.
“At the end of the day, we have to stand up—somebody has to stand up and be strong on these issues, and there’s just a window of time right now that I’m really able to do this. My girls are older now, my business is okay, and it’s just something I can do right now and put my whole heart and soul into it.”
Pohl says he has some previous political involvement, and has also been involved on a number of board.
“I’ve been involved on the Yorkton-Melville Conservative EDA on the executive, and I’ve worked on provincial campaigns and and also Cathay Wagantall’s federal campaign.
Pohl says there are certain issues that are top of mind for constituents as he talks to them around the riding.
“Top of mind is the firearms grab. I hear a lot about that,” he says.
“I hear a lot about the hate speech about the freedoms of speech, and that they’re taking away the religious freedoms. And I hear a lot about affordability, that people are just having a hard time.”
Pohl says he has been doing a good job of getting around the riding.
“We kicked it off with a big meet and greet in Ebenezer, and we have traveled the whole riding from Carrot River and Tobin Lake area right down to the Qu’Appelle Valley doing meet and greets, knocking on doors, visiting customers, existing customers. We’ve been out there face to face.”
Pohl says he wants people to know he’s familiar with the riding.
“My work takes me every week to just about every corner of this riding with my furnace and duct cleaning business. I know the people, I know the area, the geography of it, but more importantly, I know the people, and I know them well, and what the issues are. I’ve been doing this for a long time, meeting people in their homes. I understand what’s going on out there. I’ve been a lifelong farmer. I’m not just talking about it, but I’ve done it. I’ve done small business. I’ve employed people. I understand that, and I’m not just talking about it, I’m doing it, and I more than understand the issues, I’m living them, and that’s important.”
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