Watchdog dubs Yukon’s political party finance system worst in Canada
By Dana Hatherly
A democracy watchdog dubs the Yukon as the “worst” in the country when it comes to its political party financing system.
“The Yukon should be called the Notorious North,” said Duff Conacher, co-founder of Democracy Watch.
“[The territory] is way behind most other jurisdictions in Canada, decades behind some of the provinces, and has a completely unethical and undemocratic and corrupting political finance system that needs to be cleaned up.”
The territory’s chief electoral officer admits the rules around who can donate to political parties and how much they can give could be better. Conacher suggests the territory could rethink contribution limits and ban donations from corporations, unions and organizations.
“Yukon’s system, which allows donations from outside the jurisdiction, is as a result also a recipe for foreign interference,” Conacher said.
“When you have unlimited donations and they can come from outside of the territory and from businesses and other organizations that want something from the government, then you’re essentially saying the government is for sale and that bribery is legalized.”
CBC News reviewed political party financing reports made public on the final day of the spring legislative sitting. In April, the Yukon Legislative Assembly set up a special committee to look at who gives money and how much they can give to political parties.
Conacher plans to make a submission to the special committee.
The Yukon currently allows corporate donations and unlimited donations from individuals as well as secret “other” sources of revenue that don’t require receipts, statements or other documentation.
The reports indicate more corporate entities were top donors to the Yukon Party compared to the other two parties.
As it has done in the past, the NDP is criticizing the Yukon Party for accepting donations from numbered companies, as well as outfitters and mining firms.
In particular, Official Opposition Leader Kate White drew attention in the legislature to a $5,000 donation to the Yukon Party by MacMillan River Adventures. In a March 2025 letter to the Yukon News, the outfitter and part owner of that company said Donald Trump Jr. invests in and has a small percentage of ownership in it.
What’s in the reports
One report summarizes the revenue political parties took in for the 2025 calendar year.
The second report sums up revenues and expenses, as well as surpluses or deficits, of political parties and candidates during the 2025 election campaign.
According to the election financing report, the NDP ended its election run as the only party with a deficit, at more than $140,000.
The other two parties came out of the campaign with a surplus: around $19,600 for the Yukon Party and just over $12,000 for the Liberals.
Not every MLA who was elected brought in the most donations compared to their opponents, according to the reports.
How much parties took in
Overall, contributions to political parties in 2025 went up from 2021, which marked the previous territorial election cycle.
Half of the donations in 2025 came in during the campaign period.
In contrast to its rivals, the Yukon Party ($515,000) raked in more than its rivals’ totals combined. Following the elections, the party took power, with a shift from eight MLAs to 14 to form a majority government.
The Yukon NDP ($170,000) and the Liberals ($174,000) were neck-and-neck. The election saw the NDP double its number of seats in the assembly, while the Liberals fell from eight seats to one.
None of the parties took contributions from outside of Canada last calendar year. Each party accepted donations from outside the territory in 2025.
When it comes to “other” revenue, the Yukon Party reported $45,000 compared to $28,000 for the NDP and $19,000 for the Liberals.
Room to improve, Elections Yukon says
Election financing is a key element of election integrity, and a well-funded campaign supports democracy, according to the territory’s head of elections.
Chief Electoral Officer Max Harvey with Elections Yukon sees room for the rules around political financing to evolve, for example, when it comes to contribution limits and who can contribute.
However, Harvey said what works in other, larger jurisdictions might not be the best fit for the Yukon.
“Cut the cloth to fit the child,” he said.
“If the balance is to be able to support funding of political parties so that they can do their job and get their messages out to the public and inform them for their voting, and that there is transparency and accountability and fairness, then that’s what I would fully support.”
Related stories from around the North:
Canada: Elections Canada apologizes to Nunavik voters left out of vote, CBC News
Finland: Cold weather perfect to pioneer electric aviation says Finnair, The Independent Barents Observer
Norway: Arctic Norwegian city gets world’s northernmost electric post truck, The Independent Barents Observer
Russia: Mining boost in Russian central Arctic to feed electric vehicle market, The Independent Barents Observer
