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Saskatchewan Party MLA Lyle Stewart is resigning his Lumsden-Morse seat because of his ongoing battle with cancer.
His resignation is effective Friday. A byelection is to be held within six months of Stewart’s resignation.
Stewart has been battling prostate cancer for a few years and said his condition has worsened. During his announcement Monday in the Legislative Assembly, Stewart became emotional when he said he would be spending time with family.
“Due to my health concerns, it appears that I will not be able to serve my constituents and my province in the way that I have in the past …,” he added.
“All good things have to come to an end, so they say, and I’ve been coming to work in this place — and what a place it is — for 23 1/2 years.”
Stewart was first elected to the Legislative Assembly in 1999 and was re-elected in five subsequent provincial elections. During his time in government, he served as minister of enterprise and innovation, minister of agriculture, provincial secretary, and legislative secretary responsible for provincial autonomy.
He was removed from that latter post by Premier Scott Moe in October after Stewart invited convicted murderer Colin Thatcher to the Speech from the Throne. Stewart later said he made an “error in judgment” in inviting his friend to the event.
He’s also known for foiling an attempted carjacking in October of 2009. Stewart fought off the man — who stabbed Stewart with a pen during the attack — and held the man down until police arrived.
Stewart, who resigned as agriculture minister in 2018 to focus on his battle with cancer, said in a media release that it was “an honour” to work during his career with Moe and with former premier Brad Wall.
In the release, Moe said thanked Stewart for his service to his constituents.
“Lyle was a great Ag minister, always standing up for Saskatchewan producers and initiating many of the great trade relationships we have today,” Moe said. “But first and foremost, he has been a dedicated and hard-working MLA, always looking out for the best interests of the people he serves.”
Stewart is the second Saskatchewan Party MLA to step down in the span of a month. Mark Docherty announced in early February that he was resigning his Regina Coronation Park seat.