Hardest parish council seats to win in St Ann for PNP, JLP
IN THE wake of the calamitous result for the People’s National Party (PNP) in the 1980 general elections, where the party lost 51-9 to the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), the JLP hammered home their advantage in the local government elections the following year winning all the divisions in St Ann, except one.
Luther Spence (PNP) – 1,301, beat Edwin Shirley (JLP) – 1,086 to be the lone voice for his party in the St Ann Parish Council, where the JLP had 18 voices in what was then a 19-seat council.
Spence’s victory was against the backdrop of Seymour Mullings retaining the South East St Ann seat for the PNP in 1980, a constituency the party has never lost in a general election.
The PNP failed to field a candidate in Watt Town and Alexandria divisions, giving the JLP walkovers in both.
The Claremont seat proved then that it is the most difficult seat in St Ann for the JLP to win. In our records (EOJ data) stretching back to 1981, the PNP has won the Claremont division all eight times.
On the other side, the JLP has never lost the Alexandria, Gibraltar and Exchange divisions, making them PNP nightmares.
LIST OF SEATS
Here is a list of tough seats that both parties will find it hard to wrest from their opponent.
Tough seats for JLP to win
Claremont, South East St Ann: The PNP has won Claremont on all occasions dating back to 1981. In the tough 1981 contest, just after the 1980 general election, Luther Spence of the PNP (1,301) beat Edwin Shirley of the JLP (1,086) by 215. In 1986, the first Parish Council election after the PNP boycotted the 1983 snap general election, Spence (3,138) retained the seat, beating the JLP’s Herschell Slack (545) by 2,593.
Spence went on to win two more elections in 1990, beating Peter Fakhourie (2,470 to 742) by 1,728, and again in 1998 this time by a reduced margin (1,086 to 795) of 291.
In 2003, the PNP’s Glover Gordon defeated the JLP’s Clifford Freemantle (1369 to 959) by 410 votes, giving way in 2007 to Lambert Weir to continue the tradition for the PNP. Weir defeated Jasper Rose (1,516 to 607) by 909 and repeated the victory in 2012 over Wilda Mae Wilmot (1,927 to 433) by 1494, and completed the hattrick in 2016 by a reduced margin.
That 2016 win represented the slimmest margin of victory for the PNP, largely because an independent candidate split the votes. Weir (991) won ahead of independent candidate Wayne Simpson (687) and the JLP’s Maurice Walters, 629.
On February 26, new PNP candidate Kaydian Harty will square off with Shasha Lee of the JLP.
Bensonton, South East St Ann: Amy Douglas of the JLP (656) defeated the PNP’s Leslie Williams (470) to capture the Bensonton seat in 1981. No record was found for the elections of 1986 and 1990 but for the five elections from 1998, it was victories for the PNP. Kawaine Cunningham in 1998 then Lydia Richards for four straight elections, saw the PNP home by comfortable to huge victory margins.
Richards has been replaced by Clovis Gohagen for the PNP who will battle it out with the JLP’s Maxine Simpson, who Richards beat by 693 votes in 2016.
Richards was nominated as an independent candidate for the February 26 polls and could pull votes from the PNP candidate, thereby benefiting the JLP candidate. Richards has since been expelled from the PNP.
Calderwood, South West St Ann: Similar to the situation in Bensonton, the JLP has not recorded a victory in Calderwood since their win in 1981, with the PNP winning all seven subsequent parish council elections. The JLP went closest in 2016 when Olivier Newby (946) lost to Paul McFarlane (1,070) by 124 votes. Paul Trowers (JLP) will challenge Paul McFarlane (PNP) for the seat on February 26.
Tough seats for the PNP to win
The JLP holds even tougher seats for the PNP to win, than vice versa.
Alexandria, South West St Ann: The JLP has won the Alexandria division in every election from 1981 to 2016, the division reflecting the Dr Neville Gallimore effect, similar to Claremont reflecting the Seymour Mullings effect for the PNP.
Derrick Frater served as councillor from 1981 to 2007, winning four straight elections after getting a bye in 1981 after the PNP failed to field a candidate. His margin of victories ranged from over 800 to 120. Gilbert McLeod won 2007 and 2012, the latter victory by just 42. In 2016 he was replaced as candidate by Rohan Davidson who won by nearly 800 votes. McLeod ran as an independent candidate and got 109 votes. On February 26 Rohan Davidson (JLP) goes up against Christopher French (PNP).
Gibraltar, South West St Ann: Similar to Alexandria, Gibraltar has been controlled by the JLP for the past 40 years, winning the division in all the Parish Council elections.
The JLP fielded different candidates in 1981, 1986, 1990, and 1998 with each winning by 797, 951, 739, and 616 votes respectively.
In 2003 Anthony Walker won by 1,093 and repeated the victory in 2007, (by 772) and 2012 (by 443). In 2016 Cardell Wickham contested for the JLP and won by 915 over Charles Clarke (PNP) who has moved to Brown’s Town division to battle with Kim Brown Lawrence.
The PNP’s Nordia Thompson will challenge the JLP’s Cardell Wickham for the seat on February 26.
Exchange, North East St Ann: This is another division that the PNP has never won over five elections, from 1998 to 2016, according to EOJ data. In 1998 former Mayor of St Ann’s Bay Delroy Giscombe (840) beat the PNP’s Raymond Gaynor (645) by 195, repeating the victory in 2003 by an increased margin by beating Kerron Green (1776 to 847) by 992. Giscombe made it three-straight in 2007, beating a returning Gaynor (1506 to 667) by 839, and completed the quadruple in 2012 by beating Orvil Scott (1416 to 926) by 490. In 2016 JLP newcomer Ian Isaacs preserved the part’s hold on the division by getting by Scott (1663 to 513) by 1150.
On February 26 the JLP’s Ian Isaacs will contest the division against the PNP’s Trevor Grier.
The JLP won the 2016 Parish Council election in St Ann, by 11 to 5 over the PNP.