Saskatchewan NDP leader looks to tap into prairie populism with baseball-themed long weekend ad

OTTAWA — Saskatchewan NDP leader Carla Beck made a memorable pitch to voters in a baseball-themed ad over Labour Day long weekend.

The ad shows a ballcap and baseball jersey clad Beck in a batting cage, interspersing attack lines with footage of her swinging at baseballs being fired from a pitching machine.

“When a batter loses their edge, they need so step away from the plate; same with politicians,” says Beck in an unsubtle dig at the Saskatchewan Party’s near 17 years in power.

The 30-second spot aired twice during the first half of TSN’s coverage of the CFL Labour Day Classic game between the Saskatchewan Roughriders and Winnipeg Blue Bombers, which Beck attended in Regina.

Pollster Lang McGilp said that the unconventional ad was an effective way for the relatively new opposition leader to introduce herself to voters.

“It was a smart play in a few different ways,” McGilp told the National Post by phone, adding that the ad’s slick production, strategic placement and unifying themes helped Beck “break through the clutter.”

“Showing (Beck) playing in a sport during a break from a major sporting event was an effective way to engage the audience,” said McGilp.

McGilp, the research director at Saskatoon-based Insightrix, said that Beck has struggled to build name recognition since winning the Saskatchewan NDP’s top job in the summer of 2022.

“About a third of voters still say they’re not familiar with Beck,” said McGilp.

Regina-based public affairs guru Dale Richardson pointed out the near total absence of NDP branding from the spot, in which Beck was draped in the green and gold provincial colours.

“The ad was noticeably focused on introducing Beck,” wrote Richardson in his daily newsletter. “A clear break as Beck continues to position her party as a moderate alternative compared to iterations of the party in the past.”

Polls show Beck’s NDP gaining on the incumbent Saskatchewan Party with the pre-election season in full swing. According to the province’s fixed election law, the vote will be held on Oct. 28.

Premier Scott Moe said “pretty soon” when asked last week when he planned to officially call the election, which would set the official campaign period in motion.

While Beck still has an uphill battle ahead of her, she can find inspiration next door in Manitoba, where fellow NDPer Wab Kinew basks in a two-thirds approval rating — the highest of any premier in Canada.

Kinew’s sustained popularity a year into his mandate hints at the resurgence of a long-dormant left populism that was once synonymous with the Canadian Prairies. Beck now looks to tap into the same current with a shrewd appeal to the many tribes of “Riders nation.”

“The Roughriders are certainly a unifying Saskatchewan brand,” said Lang, noting the team’s popularity across all demographics and regions of the province.

One politician who doesn’t yet appear to be getting a bump from the resurgence of prairie populism is federal NDP leader Jagmeet Singh. A 338Canada model released over the weekend shows that the Singh-led NDP would win just 16 seats in a new election, a loss of nine from their current share.

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