36 candidates for cabinet: Who’ll be the chosen ones?

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This article was published 18/10/2009 (5863 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Reward and revitalization will be the watchwords of premier-designate Greg Selinger’s next cabinet, to be named in the next two weeks.

Selinger said he’ll have a throne speech ready before Christmas and will start work on a new cabinet Monday morning. That’s a process that traditionally involves meeting with all 36 NDP MLAs and juggling abilities and alliances — a process made more awkward following a tough leadership battle.

There are at least two vacant posts to fill — Selinger’s old slot as finance minister and the post of aboriginal and northern affairs, which was held by the late Oscar Lathlin and is now held on an acting basis by Rupertsland MLA Eric Robinson.

There is also speculation that several cabinet ministers might be retiring in two years — those could include Justice Minister Dave Chomiak and Advanced Education Minister Diane McGifford — and will step out of cabinet to allow rookies to rise.

Insiders say Selinger, who is naturally cautious, will likely only make tweaks to his cabinet, much like Premier Gary Doer used to do. He may wait for the dust to settle before making wholesale changes. But others say Selinger may have made promises to current cabinet ministers and supporters, so a bigger rejig could be possible. It’s also possible that Selinger might create a new portfolio or two such as an environment ministry, or juggle responsibilities, such as creating a stand-alone housing ministry.

Here are the players to watch.

Who’s in

Steve Ashton: Selinger made it clear his rival has a place in cabinet. Ashton is a veteran of several portfolios, most recently intergovernmental affairs. He may be a lone wolf, but he’s always been a sharp minister and shows his capabilities in a crisis such as last spring’s flood.

Andrew Swan: The young lawyer was seen as the NDP establishment’s choice to renew the party. After his early departure, he threw his support behind Selinger and will certainly be rewarded with a choice cabinet post, probably justice. He’d likely be justice minister at some point even if Selinger didn’t owe him.

Rosann Wowchuk: Word is, she could be finance minister. As agriculture minister, she sat beside Selinger for years at treasury board meetings and took over all his files when he resigned to run for leader. And she holds a rural seat, which the NDP needs to keep.

Theresa Oswald: She’s a strong health minister. No point moving her with a possible H1N1 pandemic looming, which Selinger mentioned several times as a top priority.

Nancy Allan: Mouthy, funny and smart as the longtime labour minister, some say she’s got the mettle to take on a bigger portfolio. But she clearly loves knocking labour and business heads together. She might stay put.

Stan Struthers: A goofy jokester, he’s managed one of the most annoying portfolios, wrangling endlessly with environmentalists, First Nations, logging companies and cottagers in the conservation portfolio. Extremely well-liked and competent, he’s likely to keep a fairly high-profile job in cabinet, perhaps as education minister.

Christine Melnick: She’s done fairly well as water minister and she is a Selinger supporter. She’s likely to stay in cabinet in a medium-sized role.

Ron Lemieux: His neckties may be cheesy but he’s among the nicest guys in cabinet and widely seen as an excellent infrastructure and transportation minister, a real consensus builder. He could stay put if the shuffle is small or move to another medium-sized portfolio.

Eric Robinson: He knows everyone in the north and everyone in the aboriginal community. He’s been acting aboriginal and northern affairs minister and it’s almost certain Selinger will make that permanent.

Kerri Irvin-Ross: An awkward politician, but her staff in Healthy Living loves her and she works like a dog, insiders say. She’s almost certain to stay in cabinet but Selinger talked a lot about recreation and disease prevention and he may beef up Healthy Living and put a higher-profile minister there.

Gord Mackintosh: He’s taken the brunt of the child welfare scandals for several years, but a lot of the plans to fix Manitoba Housing and child welfare are well underway. Mackintosh, a former environmental lawyer, likes to get his hands dirty in policy, so a new environment minister portfolio could suit him.

Peter Bjornson: He’s about to become the longest-serving education minister in Manitoba history, so he might be ready for a change. But as a former teacher, he’s a good fit in education. He could move to advanced education.

Jim Rondeau: There was scuttlebutt he might not run again, but that’s been debunked. As energy minister, he’s not seen as a heavy hitter in cabinet but he was a strong Selinger supporter.

Who’s in next

Bill Blaikie: As a party elder and early Selinger supporter, he’s almost certainly headed for cabinet. It’s just not clear where he’ll land. Insiders say it’s likely to be something on the social justice or environmental side, perhaps advanced education or water stewardship. He won’t likely get intergovernmental affairs as long as the Conservatives rule Ottawa, but that could be a good fit, too.

Jennifer Howard: The Fort Rouge MLA is technically one of the rookies, but she has worked in senior health policy jobs in the NDP political office. Whip smart and politically astute, she could bypass a junior ministry and head right to the front bench, perhaps in family services and housing.

Erin Selby: Her Southdale seat is a top Tory target and the former television news host is widely seen as headed for cabinet next time if not now. She’d likely start in a junior ministry such as culture, or science, technology, energy and mines.

Drew Caldwell: The former education minister and Brandon MLA has been in the wilderness for a long time and may be ready for another shot at the big time. Plus, the NDP needs to show Brandon some love.

maryagnes.welch@freepress.mb.ca