Prince Albert is a federal electoral district in Saskatchewan, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1908 to 1988, and since 1997. It is one of two districts which has been represented by two different Prime Ministers: William Lyon Mackenzie King from 1926 to 1945, and John Diefenbaker from 1953 to 1979; the district of Quebec East was the other. It is also the only district where two future Prime Ministers competed against each other â King against Diefenbaker, in the 1926 election.
This riding is found in the central part of the province, in the transitional area between the Aspen parkland and boreal forest biomes. The major centre of the riding, and its namesake, is the city of Prince Albert which has a rich political history. Smaller centres in the riding include Nipawin, Melfort, and Tisdale.
The electoral district was first created in 1907 from portions of Humboldt, Mackenzie, and Saskatchewan. It existed in this form until 1987 when it was abolished into Prince AlbertâÂÂChurchill River, SaskatoonâÂÂHumboldt, and The BattlefordsâÂÂMeadow Lake. It was re-created in 1996 from portions of the Prince AlbertâÂÂChurchill River, Mackenzie, and SaskatoonâÂÂHumboldt ridings.
While the city of Prince Albert has significant NDP support, the rural areas are among the most conservative in Saskatchewan and the country. As a result, it has been in the hands of a centre-right party for its entire existence in its current incarnation.
This riding lost a fraction of territory to DesnethéâÂÂMissinippiâÂÂChurchill River, and gained territory from SaskatoonâÂÂHumboldt, DesnethéâÂÂMissinippiâÂÂChurchill River and a fraction from SaskatoonâÂÂWanuskewin during the 2012 electoral redistribution.
During the campaign for the 2021 election, Liberal candidate, Estelle Hjertaas, had several of her campaign signs vandalized.