Doug Graham, the Porter Creek North MLA and Education minister, will not seek the riding’s nomination for the upcoming territorial election.

“I would like to thank my constituents for their support over the past five years,” he said in a brief statement put out today by the Yukon Party.

“It’s been a pleasure to serve the residents of Porter Creek North.”

The minister of Education since January 2015, Graham served as the minister of Health and Social Services before that.

He served on city council from 2000 until he was elected to the legislature in 2011.

Graham’s first foray into politics though goes back to 1978, when territorial party politics were born and when he was elected in the then-riding of Porter Creek West.

That’s when the Yukon Party was known as the Yukon Territorial Progressive Conservative Party, and was headed by the late government leader Chris Pearson.

Graham remained in the role of MLA until 1982.

In those years, he served at various times as deputy chair of committee of the whole, chair of the standing committee of rules, elections and privileges, along with ministerial roles for Education, Justice, Consumer and Corporate Affairs, the Workers’ Compensation Board, Information Resources and Government Services.

He then went on to a 28-year career at Yukon College before retiring and running in the 2011 election. He had initially said he would run for the Yukon Liberal Party in that election.

Graham could not be reached for comment before this afternoon’s deadline.