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In fact, Wall’s three majority popular vote wins in the past 10 years were as many as Saskatchewan had seen in the previous 36 years from 1971 to 2007.

The long-standing lesson the Sask. Party is failing to learn is that it’s not very successful when it’s seen to be placating social conservatives. It leads to other potential free-enterprise voters looking elsewhere to mark their ballots.

Consider the StarPhoenix’s story by Alex MacPherson that within the last year, Wall’s government examined a law in which girls under 18 years of age would be forced to receive parental consent before getting an abortion — something that would create multiple constitutional issues and “insurmountable” problems, according to provincial government documents.

Consider that three of the current leadership hopefuls (Ken Cheveldayoff, Scott Moe and Rob Clarke) expressed support for this notion in the RightNow survey, even though two of them were in cabinet in the past year and would have been privy to the legal opinion cabinet sought.

Consider that the sudden hardline appeal to pro-lifers by Cheveldayoff doesn’t seem all that coincidental, given that it comes during a Sask. Party race when candidates have had significant difficulty distinguishing themselves from one another.

That politicians in this party are still using social conservative foot soldiers for their own political gain (with no evidence that they can or will actually address the abortion issue when in government) seems both unethical and troubling.

But that the Sask. Party still doesn’t seem to get that hard-line social conservatives are a political problem is even more bizarre.

Mandryk is the political columnist for the Regina Leader-Post.

mmandryk@postmedia.com