Yukon Party facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Yukon Party Parti du Yukon
Active territorial party
Leader	Currie Dixon
President	Melanie Brais
Founded	1991; 34 years ago (1991)
Preceded by	Progressive Conservative Party
Headquarters	Whitehorse, YT
Ideology	Conservatism Yukon regionalism Provincehood
Political position	Centre-right
Colours	Blue
Seats in Legislature	8 / 19

The Yukon Party (also known as Parti du Yukon in French) is a political group in Yukon, Canada. It's a conservative party, which means it generally supports traditional values and less government spending. It took over from an older party called the Yukon Progressive Conservative Party.

How the Yukon Party Started

In 1991, the federal government's Progressive Conservative Party was not very popular. Because of this, the Yukon Progressive Conservatives decided to separate from the federal party. They changed their name to the "Yukon Party."

The party held its first leadership vote in June 1991. Chris Young, who was only 21, won the vote. He used to be the head of the youth group for the Progressive Conservatives. But soon after, two politicians, Bea Firth and Alan Nordling, left the party. They started their own group called the Independent Alliance Party.

By August, Chris Young decided to step down as leader. He felt that people in Yukon might not support a leader who was so young and new to politics. In November, John Ostashek became the new leader without anyone else running against him.

The Yukon Party won the election in 1992, and Ostashek became the Premier of Yukon. His government was a minority government, meaning they didn't win enough seats to have full control. However, Nordling, Firth, and Willard Phelps were re-elected as independent politicians. They all agreed to support the Yukon Party on important votes. Ostashek's government became unpopular because they raised taxes and cut services. The party lost the 1996 election, winning only three seats. This was the first time they fell to third place, behind the Yukon Liberal Party.

In the 1996 election, Alan Nordling rejoined the Yukon Party but lost his election. Bea Firth retired from politics.

What Happened After 2000

The Yukon Party continued to struggle in the 2000 election. They won only one seat in the legislature. Many voters who supported right-wing ideas started to vote for the Yukon Liberal Party instead. This led to the Liberals taking power for the first time in Yukon's history.

However, the Liberal government, led by Premier Pat Duncan, had problems within its own party. Even though they had won a majority of seats, some members left or resigned. This meant the Liberals became a minority government within two years. Premier Duncan called an early election for November 4, 2002, hoping to win back a majority. But this plan did not work out.

The Yukon Party had chosen Dennis Fentie as its new leader in June 2002. Fentie was a Member of the Yukon Legislative Assembly (MLA) from a rural area. He had previously been part of the Yukon New Democratic Party (NDP). Even though the election was called suddenly, the Yukon Party managed to win a majority government with 12 seats. The NDP won five seats, and the Liberals were left with only one. Fentie became the second Premier of Yukon from a rural area.

On October 10, 2006, the Yukon Party was re-elected. They held 10 seats in the Legislative Assembly. The Yukon Liberals won five seats, and the Yukon New Democrats won three.

The party lost the election in 2016 and became the Official Opposition. This means they are the main party that challenges the government.

Currie Dixon led the party into the 2021 election. The Yukon Party won 8 seats and received the most votes overall. Dixon himself was elected in the area of Copperbelt North. On April 23, the Liberal Party formed a minority government. A few days later, on April 28, the NDP announced they would support the Liberals in a formal agreement. This agreement is called a confidence and supply agreement, where the NDP agrees to support the Liberals on important votes.

Choosing New Leaders

2011 Leadership Vote

On May 28, 2011, the party held a vote to choose a new leader after Dennis Fentie. Darrell Pasloski was chosen after just one round of voting.

2020 Leadership Vote

On November 20, 2019, the party announced they would hold a leadership vote on May 23, 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the party president, Mark Beese, said that voting would happen by phone and online. Currie Dixon was elected leader with 50.44% of the votes in the second round. Dixon received 752 votes, while Brad Cathers received 682 votes. In the first round, Dixon had 694 votes, and Cathers had 637. Linda Benoit, who had worked for the party for a long time, finished third with 160 votes.

Election Results Over Time

This table shows how the Yukon Party has done in elections over the years.

Election	Leader	Votes	%	Seats	+/–	Position	Government
1992	John Ostashek	4,675	35.9	7 / 17	7	1st	Minority
1996		4,366	30.1	3 / 17	4	2nd	Opposition
2000		3,466	23.3	1 / 17	2	3rd	Third party
2002	Dennis Fentie	5,650	40.3	12 / 18	11	1st	Majority
2006		5,503	40.6	10 / 18	2	1st	Majority
2011	Darrell Pasloski	6,400	40.6	11 / 19	1	1st	Majority
2016		6,272	33.4	6 / 19	5	2nd	Opposition
2021	Currie Dixon	7,477	39.3	8 / 19	2	1st	Opposition

Leaders of the Yukon Party

Here is a list of the people who have led the Yukon Party:

• Chris Young - 1991
• John Ostashek - 1991–2000
• Peter Jenkins - 2000–2002 (This was a temporary leader)
• Dennis Fentie - 2002–2011
• Darrell Pasloski - 2011–2016
• Stacey Hassard - 2016–2020 (This was a temporary leader)
• Currie Dixon - 2020–present

Related Topics

• List of premiers of Yukon
• List of Yukon Leaders of Opposition
• Yukon Progressive Conservative Party
• Yukon Freedom Party