Former Manitoba premier Heather Stefanson resigning as MLA | CBC News

Former Manitoba premier Heather Stefanson is resigning as the MLA for Tuxedo. 

Stefanson told the legislature Thursday she was addressing the chamber for the last time before announcing her resignation, which takes effect May 6. 

“Thank you Manitoba for the opportunity, the responsibility and the honour,” Stefanson said, reading a speech before question period.  

“I want to thank the constituents of Tuxedo,” she said. “Tuxedo is where my grandparents raised my father and where [my husband] Jason and I have raised our children. For us, it’s home.”  

Speaking with reporters, Stefanson said announcing her resignation after 23 years was tough. 

“It’s emotional, especially having my family in the gallery,” she said. “It was … an amazing experience, and I’m so thankful to have them all here today.”

WATCH | Stefanson announces her retirement in the legislature:

Former Manitoba premier Heather Stefanson announces resignation as MLA

After more than 23 years representing the Winnipeg riding of Tuxedo in the legislature, Heather Stefanson announced her resignation Thursday. Stefanson became Manitoba’s first female premier in 2021, but was ousted from government last October when her Progressive Conservatives were defeated by the NDP.

Stefanson was the first woman to serve as Manitoba’s premier. Her Progressive Conservative government was defeated last October following a divisive election campaign.

The PCs gave Stefanson a standing ovation after the announcement. No one from the NDP side of the bench stood up until Premier Wab Kinew did a few seconds into the applause.

“I want to take this opportunity to thank the member for Tuxedo for her life of service to the great province of Manitoba,” Kinew told the legislature.

“The legacy that she leaves will be defined by her and others, but on a personal level, later today I will reread the letter that she left for me on the desk in the premier’s office and reflect on our shared commitment to the people of Manitoba.”

Stefanson stepped down as party leader earlier this year, but had continued to serve as a member of Manitoba’s legislative assembly.

She was a key player throughout the PCs’ most recent tenure in office.

Stefanson, who has held the Tuxedo riding in Winnipeg for the Tories since 2000, took on several roles in cabinet, including the justice and health portfolios, after the Tories came to power in 2016 and were re-elected in 2019.

She was chosen as the party’s leader and became premier in 2021, after then-premier Brian Pallister stepped down as his party’s popularity began to sag.

The PCs moved away from an austerity-minded approach under Stefanson, but were unable to earn a third consecutive election victory last Oct. 3, when the NDP won a majority.

The Tories’ election campaign was denounced by several high-ranking party members for campaign ads touting the government’s opposition to a landfill search for the remains of First Nations women believed to have been victims of a serial killer.

Stefanson later apologized for those ads, saying they “hurt Manitobans.”

She announced after losing the Oct. 3 election that she would step down as party leader, but stayed on in that role until January. At the time, she wouldn’t commit to serving her entire term as MLA.

Stefanson said Thursday while her resignation is the end of her career in elected politics, she will always support the Progressive Conservative Party. 

“It goes back to wanting to end one chapter in my life before starting another chapter,” she said. “I do have some irons in the fire and some exciting things coming in the near future.”

However, she would not elaborate on what she plans to do next.

“Stay tuned,” she said. “Isn’t that what I’ve always said before?”

WATCH | What’s next? ‘Stay tuned,’ says Stefanson:

What’s next for Heather Stefanson? ‘Stay tuned,’ says former premier

Heather Stefanson talks about her resignation as an MLA, which takes effect on May 6, and discusses her future plans, which she says do not include running again for an elected political position.