SASKATOON-The excitement of Wednesday's provincial election cliffhanger has deflected attention somewhat from necessary analysis of the new legislature's composition. The new House is only somewhat different than the old one, and this is problematical. In particular, there is a severe lack of diversity in this province's political representation.

Buckley Belanger, for example, again secured his Athabasca constituency. Most recently, he served the prior government as the Minister of Northern Affairs and Minister of the Environment and was the singular representative of aboriginal people in the government.

Also, for the first time, a member of the Peter Ballyntyne Cree Nation, NDP candidate Joan Beatty, won her Cumberland seat. The first aboriginal woman elected to the legislature, she remarked,"That is awesome. . . [and I'm] the first First Nations person as well."

While the presence of both MLAs helps to ameliorate the massive under representation of First Nations people in the assembly, they need more colleagues. Aboriginal leaders suggest that their members' numbers are significant in 17 of the 58 constituencies, and aboriginal people are obviously an important demographic group, especially for the province's economic future.

The new assembly is characterized by the severe under representation of other groups as well. The under representation of women in Saskatchewan's legislature is particularly appalling. From 1916 —when women here got the vote — to October of 2003, only 36 of all the elected MLAs have been female. In other words, a startling 95 per cent of of Saskatchewan legislators have historically been male.

Unfortunately, the future looks grim too, with only six women, or about 10 per cent of the legislature, winning their seats in the 2003 election. In many legislatures, female representation rates normally are between 25 per cent to 35 per cent. For the purposes of comparison, two well known non-democratic countries also have legislatures with similar levels of female representation: Malaysia and Zimbabwe.

If our legislature were lose one or two women members in the near future to retirement or illness, Saskatchewan will be rubbing shoulders with countries like Iran, which has a six per cent female participation rate in its legislature.

Saskatchewan women fared better under Mr. Romanow and Calvert was rightly criticized before the election for failing to represent women adequately in his cabinets.

While the NDP has picked up some rookie women MLAs, such as Beatty and Sandra Morin for Regina Walsh Acres, it has alsolost seasoned veterans with the retirement of Saskatoon members Carolyn Jones and Pat Lorje, who stepped aside shortly before this election.

Asian Canadians are another group of people who historically are not adequately represented in our legislature. Saskatchewan has many Asian families, some of whom have resided here for at least four generations. Recent immigration from Asian and Southeast Asian countries has settled many new people in Saskatoon and Regina, particularly. Where are their representatives?

Young people constitute another group on our endangered political species list. While the NDP certainly welcomes the chance to govern, it lost a key opportunity to recharge its personnel and regenerate its membership by spending a few years in opposition.

Over time, all parties in government age because incumbents hold onto their seats across elections and new seat gains become rare. Governing parties often have problems ensuring new people and younger people have the opportunity to gain legislative experience.

The NDP caucus now is in its second generation, where once young newcomers like Andrew Thompson and Maynard Sonntag are now considered seasoned members of the senior leadership.

In this respect, the legislature represents the aging provincial demographic profile far too well. This is not a positive trend, given the concerns expressed by all three parties with respect to youth out-migration. Can young people take the host of youth initiatives seriously when those MLAs who are assigned youth-related government portfolios are well into middle age?

Of course, concerns about representational diversity can be taken to fantastic extremes. Critics of diversity often ask whether every particular group, or ethnic identity ought to have representation, and so through this argumentative tactic they try to undermine justifiable concerns.

Naturally, it is impossible to try to represent every single grouping at the same time in the same legislature. Yet Saskatchewan's lack of demographic diversity in its legislature is troubling.

The imbalance between the white, male majority and other groups is stark. The basic idea of representative liberal democracy implies that all citizens ought to have equal access to, and participation within, their governmental institutions. How can one argue that Saskatchewan adheres to the basic ideas of liberal democracy when its assembly so obviously belongs to one sort of group?

Moreover, the citizens of the province historically have taken pride in the heterogenous immigrant and aboriginal populations, and every year communities hold events such as Saskatoon's FolkFest to celebrate and share these cultures. The new assembly's composition, like the old legislative assembly, contradicts the province's motto: Multis E Gentibus Vires, meaning "From Many Peoples, Strength."

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