Editing Lorne Calvert (section)

=== Retirement ===
Just two weeks after the 2007 election, federal [[New Democratic Party|NDP]] spokesman [[Brad Lavigne]] confirmed to reporters that [[Jack Layton]]'s office had asked Calvert to consider standing as a candidate in the [[2008 Canadian federal election|2008 federal election]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=French |first=Janet |date=2007-11-20 |title=Federal NDP woo Calvert for election |url=http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix/news/local/story.html?id=811a39f0-4d5f-4d60-8aef-441a7d0576f1 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121103103452/http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix/news/local/story.html?id=811a39f0-4d5f-4d60-8aef-441a7d0576f1 |archive-date=2012-11-03 |work=Saskatoon StarPhoenix |via=canada.com}}</ref> Calvert declined to run, but stated that he would support the party's federal candidates.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2007-11-23 |title=Calvert all but rules out federal politics |url=http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/story.html?id=67a5ea80-b1db-48d2-9089-2117f06a97a5&k=8191 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511123838/http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/story.html?id=67a5ea80-b1db-48d2-9089-2117f06a97a5&k=8191 |archive-date=2011-05-11 |work=Regina Leader-Post |via=canada.com}}</ref>

Calvert announced on October 16, 2008, that he would be stepping down as party leader, triggering a leadership race.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2008-10-16 |title=Former Sask. premier to step down as NDP leader |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/former-sask-premier-to-step-down-as-ndp-leader-1.737210 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220723021305/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/former-sask-premier-to-step-down-as-ndp-leader-1.737210 |archive-date=2022-07-23 |access-date=2024-04-07 |work=CBC News}}</ref> [[Dwain Lingenfelter]], a former cabinet minister in the government's of Romanow and [[Allan Blakeney]], was elected the party's new leader in a four-person contest on June 6, 2009.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2009-06-06 |title=Saskatchewan New Democrats choose Dwain Lingenfelter as leader |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/saskatchewan-new-democrats-choose-dwain-lingenfelter-as-leader-1.800567 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160125003335/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/saskatchewan-new-democrats-choose-dwain-lingenfelter-as-leader-1.800567 |archive-date=2016-01-25 |access-date=2024-04-07 |work=CBC News}}</ref> At the end of the Spring session in May 2009, Calvert touted the economic progress his government had made, and revealed that he planned to return to the United Church.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2009-05-14 |title=Lorne Calvert wraps up career in legislature |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/lorne-calvert-wraps-up-career-in-legislature-1.824553 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240407164034/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/lorne-calvert-wraps-up-career-in-legislature-1.824553 |archive-date=2024-04-07 |access-date=2024-04-07 |work=CBC News}}</ref>