Former PPC candidate Mark Friesen to run for Buffalo Party in Meewasin byelection

A fourth candidate has joined the race for the seat vacated by former Saskatchewan NDP Leader Ryan Meili.

Mark Friesen, a Saskatoon-born small business owner and former correctional officer who ran unsuccessfully for the People’s Party of Canada in the past two federal elections, announced his candidacy Tuesday in the Saskatoon Meewasin riding.

Friesen will be running under the banner of the Buffalo Party of Saskatchewan, which was established in 2020 but failed to win any seats in that election.

According to a statement from the party, Friesen is the founder and CEO of the Forum for Canadian Sovereignty, “a non-governmental organization actively opposing the globalist agenda.”

“Our provincial legislature is full of establishment politicians who have become way too cozy and comfortable and have failed to defend and protect the values of the people of Saskatchewan,” Friesen said in a statement accompanying the announcement.

“We desperately need change and leaders with the courage to stand up to Ottawa and the globalist policies which will hurt people in this province.”

Friesen has gained some notoriety and a large following on social media, where he styles himself “The Grizzly Patriot,” through his outspoken opposition to COVID-19 vaccines, public health measures, and various policies of the Trudeau government.

While a date for the byelection has yet to be finalized, Friesen joins a number of candidates who have already committed to the race, including the Saskatchewan Party’s Kim Goff, the Saskatchewan NDP’s Nathaniel Teed, and the Liberal Party of Saskatchewan’s Jeff Walters.

Meili announced his resignation as both party leader and MLA in May, following his party’s defeat in another byelection, held in the former NDP stronghold of Athabasca.