Jon Hromek, leader of the Saskatchewan United Party, said he hopes to provide a different path for conservative voters in Saskatchewan's provincial election. (Daniel Reech/980 CJME)

By CKOM News - Daniel Reech

Election

Meet the leader of the Saskatchewan United Party

Oct 18, 2024 | 11:00 AM

Jon Hromek wants to plant the seeds of change in Saskatchewan politics, and in his spare time he enjoys planting trees.

As a lifelong conservative, Hromek said he feels the Saskatchewan Party has wavered from its roots. With provincial politics dominated by the Sask. Party and Saskatchewan NDP, Hromek says it’s time for voters to have a third viable option.

Over the past two years, the Saskatchewan United Party leader said it feels like he hasn’t had the chance to do anything but campaign, but when he does have some downtime he said he loves to relax by playing with his kids, watching football or planting trees.

“We have an acreage just outside of town in Lumsden, and I plant a lot of trees,” Hromek said.

“I just like to enjoy our space at our house and our yard, and play with the kids and just have a good time.”

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Hromek said he mainly plants varieties of poplar, including Okanese and Assiniboine poplars, saying they can handle the prairie winds. He also grows birch and fruit trees.

“The fruit trees I enjoy planting, but you’ve gotta make sure that you put them in kind of an enclosed area,” he said.

“We have so many deer around Lumsden. They just come in and eat it all the time.”

Whether it’s companies or trees, Hromek said he just likes to watch things grow.

“I just think it’s so cool how you take a plant or a tree, and you just give it the right nutrient at the right time, the right amount of water, and then it just it kind of grows,” he said.

A Saskatchewan boy, Hromek was originally born in the Dysart-Cupar area and lived there until grade school when his family moved to the town of Three Hills in Alberta.

When he graduated high school, he moved back to Saskatchewan to study petroleum engineering at the University of Regina, earning a bachelor of applied science degree. He then entered the province’s oil and gas industry and has been in it ever since.

Hromek said his experience in the field helped inform his politics.

“We’ve dealt with the government – both federal and provincial government – for years, so you know how legislation works, you know how policy works,” he said.“You can see things full cycle from a high level, as well as a granular level.”

Hromek said the aggressive and capital-intensive nature of the oil industry helps keep its decision-makers vigilant.

He said he decided to enter politics due to his belief that the Sask. Party has strayed away from its conservative identity and hasn’t been respectful of taxpayer dollars.

Hromek also said he was motivated by events like the finding of sexually explicit cards at Lumsden High School that were left accidentally by Planned Parenthood after a sex education presentation.

He said education needs to move to model of regional autonomy, which he argued would be better suited to deal with issues such as classroom complexity.

“If you’re from Regina, the class complexity is much different than, say, if you’re from Central Butte,” he said.

Hromek said one of the key issues in his campaign is affordability, which is why he wants to cut the provincial sales tax in half and axe the fuel tax, as well as provide seniors with 65 per cent in savings on their property taxes.

“That’s a big push for us, because right now, from what I’m seeing, the taxpayers are completely tapped out,” he said. “There is no extra room there, and they’re falling behind every month that time goes on.”

He also said he wants a health-care system that works as a universal private-public joint system.

Hromek played hockey and volleyball as a kid, and said he still plays the odd game of shinny.

Hromek said he never had the chance to play tackle football as a kid, because it wasn’t offered at his high school, but he’s since gained the opportunity to coach his sons in flag football due to their proximity to Regina. Hromek said he’s aiming to coach them in the Regina Minor Football youth tackle league.

“It’s such a team game. It’s such a strategic game,” he said.

“We really enjoy playing it. My boys really like playing it as well, and we enjoy watching it on TV.”

Hromek said his family enjoys watching the Riders, but also watches the NFL. As for his favourite team? Hromek said he’ll root for anyone but the Kansas City Chiefs.

“At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter who wins as long as they both play well – it’s exciting,” he said.

The provincial election is scheduled for Oct. 28.