Sask. has been a sea of blue in recent federal elections. Here's why it's worth watching this time around

Saskatchewan has been almost entirely blue in federal politics since the Conservative Party of Canada first ran a slate of candidates in the province in 2004.

While the Liberals and the NDP have picked up occasional seats, Saskatchewan's 14 federal ridings remain a stronghold for the Conservatives.

With a federal election looming, CBC News approached experts to get their views on the state of the race in the province.

There are 14 federal districts in Saskatchewan. The Conservatives have controlled all of them since 2019.

Daniel Westlake, an assistant professor of political studies at the University of Saskatchewan, said that is unlikely to change this election. 

"My view is Saskatchewan is probably the most conservative province in the country, more so than Alberta," Westlake said. 

Jim Farney, director of the Johnson Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy, agreed.

"Fundamentally, we look like a blue province," Farney said.

Farney said that at the moment, Saskatchewan is likely more supportive of the Conservatives than it is of the province's governing Saskatchewan Party. 

Westlake said Saskatchewan is a very rural province, and an increasing urban-rural divide will make it difficult for the Liberals or the NDP to secure enough votes. 

While Alberta may view itself as a steadfast Conservative province, there are pockets of Calgary and Edmonton that are hospitable to the Liberals or the NDP, Westlake said.

"It is not clear that those same pockets exist in Saskatchewan," Westlake said.

The electoral boundaries of all 14 Saskatchewan ridings changed as part of the 2022 electoral redistribution process.

The experts CBC spoke with said the changes will likely have little effect on the outcomes — except in one place.