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The leader of the Saskatchewan NDP is expected to make the case for his party, which has struggled to gain support in rural areas and in the business community, just over a year before the next provincial election.

Ryan Meili’s keynote address to the party convention this weekend is likely to emphasize that education and health care are long-term investments rather than costs, and that the economy should work for everyone in the province.

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Meili’s speech is also an opportunity to energize the roughly 300 delegates who plan to make the trip to Prince Albert this weekend, which the party’s chief executive says is critically important.

“Really, this weekend is a chance for lots of people to get together, to get excited, to work together, to learn and build and be off and running for the next year, for the provincial election,” John Tzupa said Thursday morning.

The NDP will be coming from behind when the next election is called. The party won 10 seats in the 2016 contest, and subsequently added three more — including Meili’s — in byelections in Saskatoon and Regina.