SASK. MARIJUANA PARTY TO DEREGISTER

The Saskatchewan Marijuana Party has gone up in smoke.

The party did not file a 2010 financial statement with the chief
electoral officer and has notified Elections Saskatchewan it intends
to deregister as a provincial political party.

Brent Nadon, manager of election finances for Elections Saskatchewan,
said the party will be required to liquidate its assets and present
them to the chief electoral officer along with a final report.

Any assets will be held in trust for two years, although those are
likely to be minimal. The Marijuana party's last financial statement
showed it had $260 cash in hand in 2009.

The party could try to register again in time for the fall provincial
election but would face some hurdles, said Nadon.

It would require 2,500 voter signatures, 1,000 of which must come from
10 different constituencies.

Being registered means a party can run candidates under its name,
raise and spend money and issue tax receipts for donations.

The party was formed in 2006 and ran five candidates in the 2007
general election, taking 0.11 per cent of the popular vote.