Manitoba elected First Nations politician Wab Kinew as its leader on Tuesday, making him the first Indigenous person voted in to head a provincial government.
Kinew, of the New Democratic Party, will take power with a majority government.
“This is a great victory for all of us in Manitoba,” Kinew told a crowd of cheering supporters in Winnipeg.
“I know a lot of people in the big cities they looked down on us here in Manitoba. But look what little old Manitoba did tonight. Manitoba did something more progressive than any of those big cities ever did.”
Kinew, originally from the Ojibways of Onigaming First Nation in northern Ontario, is a former journalist and author.
“He’s a great communicator and knows how to navigate the media universe,” said University of Winnipeg professor Felix Mathieu, adding that Kinew had “stood out for his political ease” in a televised debate, where he had “unquestionably” emerged victorious.
About 18 per cent of Manitoba’s population is Indigenous, and the province was led by a MĂ©tis premier in the late 1800s.
The first Indigenous premier in Canada was Richard Nerysoo, who served as leader in the Northwest Territories from 1984–1985.
The country’s First Nations people gained the right to vote in federal elections in 1960.
The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs hailed Kinew’s win as “a powerful affirmation of increased inclusivity and First Nations’ participation and representation within Manitoba’s political landscape.”
