Dawson Trail MLA Ron Lemieux has announced he will not be seeking re-election this spring. The 65 year-old says a recent health scare gave him time to ponder his political future.

"I had to have emergency surgery when I was on a holiday in the United States," shares Lemieux. "It's not life threatening, it's not cancer or anything related to heart or anything, it was just a bad infection that needed to have surgery and needed a couple of weeks to heal up."

Lemieux says on Monday of this week his doctor gave him the green light to return to work.

"One of the most difficult decisions I've ever had to make because I really enjoy my job and I enjoy politics," he says. "It makes it extremely difficult when you have to make a choice like that."

But he says with close friends dying of cancer, this health scare made him question what he wants the next years of his life to look like. Lemieux says he wants to use his spare time to be with family and friends and for his other love, which is golfing.

The political career of Ron Lemieux started on September 21, 1999 when he won the seat in La Verendrye. It was the first time an NDP candidate had ever won there. Lemieux went on to win elections in 2003 and 2007 before winning a 4th election in 2011 in Dawson Trail.

"To have been elected four times is a real honour and a privilege," says Lemieux. "For me, not running this spring is something that I will miss because I love the job and all the people that I work with, all municipal leaders, people within the different communities that I've had a chance to meet over seventeen years, I'm going to miss that."

Lemieux admits because of the late decision not to run, it will mean the riding association will have to act quickly to find an NDP candidate. He expects a nomination meeting will happen in the next couple of weeks.