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Political tide changing slowly as Sask. elects more new moms

“I’m really excited by the amount of younger women who are entering politics and are choosing to run,” said Sask. NDP MLA Nicole Sarauer.

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Nicole Sarauer is hopeful that her colleague’s experience encourages more young women to become involved in politics.

Aleana Young campaigned in the provincial election right up to the day before her daughter was born, on Sunday.

Election Day followed on Monday, and — still situated in the mother-baby unit — Young, the NDP candidate for Regina University, attended a Zoom meeting with her political teammates.

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“I’m really excited by the amount of younger women who are entering politics and are choosing to run, and I do hope that Aleana’s story encourages more people to get involved,” Sarauer said Monday.

Young wasn’t the only woman campaigning with a baby on her mind.

Sarauer — the re-elected MLA for Regina Douglas Park — had a daughter last year and is expecting a second child in April.

Meara Conway, the new MLA for Regina Elphinstone-Centre, has an 18-month-old son.

“I think there’s a lot of women out there that juggle tough jobs and parenthood, and I look forward to letting them actually inform one another, for sure,” Conway told the Leader-Post on election night.

While at least 16 NDP candidates and three Saskatchewan Party candidates are women who have minor-age children, it’s not exactly a norm to see young women running for (or holding) office.

Melanee Thomas said she has heard “mothers swear on a stack of Bibles that you just couldn’t be a good mother and good politician at the same time.”

A University of Calgary political scientist, Thomas co-edited the 2017 book Mothers and Others: The Role of Parenthood in Politics.

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“If you can’t actually be an active parent and a good representative, then what have we been asking about all of these fathers in politics …?” said Thomas.

“If we reject that particular view of what it means to be a dad, then we should demand that our institutions have flexibility for people who want to be active parents, quite independent of their gender.”

At this point, many political institutions in Canada and elsewhere aren’t very flexible.

NDP candidates Aleana Young (left) and Nicole Sarauer are pictured during the Saskatchewan provincial election campaign. Young had her baby on Oct. 24, 2020. Sarauer’s daughter Olivia (centre) was born in July 2019 and Sarauer is expecting again in spring of 2021.
NDP candidates Aleana Young (left) and Nicole Sarauer are pictured during the Saskatchewan provincial election campaign. Young had her baby on Oct. 24, 2020. Sarauer’s daughter Olivia (centre) was born in July 2019 and Sarauer is expecting again in spring of 2021. Photo by Nicole Sarauer /Facebook

Sarauer’s pregnancy last year resulted in the Sask. Party and NDP collaborating to allow for parental leave and bringing babies into the Legislative Assembly.

The Saskatchewan bill doesn’t give a specific limit on days for members’ leave. Sarauer gave birth in July 2019 and returned to the new Legislative session in October.

“Legislatures don’t actually have a mechanism to address parenting and parenting leave until they actually have a member who is pregnant and needs it,” said Thomas.

“It takes someone who is pregnant to spark that, which says a lot about the assumption about what it means to be a man in politics who’s also a parent.”

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Men are often not held responsible for caring duties, said Thomas. She points to New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who “very explicitly” told the public her child’s father is caring for the baby while she works.

“Men just know that they’re not going to be held responsible for the caring duties,” added Thomas. “I think one of the ways you could address this is by having more new moms, in particular, in positions where they can expect legislatures to act on this stuff.”

Just as Young video-conferenced with her colleagues from the hospital, elected representatives could do their work remotely when being physically present is an issue.

Thomas said she could see the argument of internet quality being insufficient in rural and remote locations to allow this.

But, she added, “Elected representatives are uniquely placed to write and pass the policy that would solve that problem and look at telecommunications … as a public utility that every Canadian has the right to access.”

Members could attend remote committee meetings, where the “in-depth heavy lifting” occurs.

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Saskatchewan NDP deputy leader and MLA Nicole Sarauer speaks to members of the media about women’s equality during a news conference held in Victoria Park in Regina on Oct. 3, 2020.
Saskatchewan NDP deputy leader and MLA Nicole Sarauer speaks to members of the media about women’s equality during a news conference held in Victoria Park in Regina on Oct. 3, 2020. Photo by BRANDON HARDER /Regina Leader-Post

In British Parliament, said Thomas, “Remote debate was actually more substantive because things like heckling didn’t work so well. I would put it to the average person, would you be OK with less heckling and other partisan nonsense and posturing in politics? Because I would.”

Parents of young children could be given a top-up to hire more staff — as is done in widespread, rural and remote constituencies.

And, childcare should be required at Legislatures during members’ working hours, which means day and night. That must also include infant care, said Thomas: “The Parliament Hill (daycare) doesn’t take infants and that’s created problems for Members of Parliament who were breastfeeding.”

As new moms running for political office, Young, Sarauer and Conway should pave the way to inspire others.

“Women in general, but especially girls are much more interested in politics when they see women doing politics, and this is internationally verified across democracies,” said Thomas.

Their presence “communicate(s) that those political institutions are for them too. The caveat though is going to be how the legislature responds to having women with infants or parents with infants in the legislature.”

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amartin@postmedia.com

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