“I would say there is still some sort of honeymoon, but at what point do we say the honeymoon is finished after a wedding? Clearly, Kinew and the NDP continue to do well,” said Christopher Adams, an adjunct professor in political science at the University of Manitoba.

The continuing investments in Canadian ports are also largely container-focused, said Barry Prentice, a professor of transportation and supply-chain management at the University of Manitoba. This won’t work for potash, he said. And while Prince Rupert is increasingly a port that handles bulk shipments, it is only serviced by a single class-one railway.

An innovative UM-led project will train people with lived experience from across the Prairies to work with researchers on developing clinical trials focused on HIV and sexually transmitted and bloodborne infections (STBBIs), such as gonorrhea and syphilis.