Barbados PM appears to have swept general elections
The party of Barbados’ Prime Minister Mia Mottley appears to have won every legislative seat in the first elections that the island has held since casting off the British monarchy
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The party of Barbados’ Prime Minister Mia Mottley appeared to swept every legislative seat in the first elections the island nation has held as a republic since casting off the British monarchy, according to preliminary results released Thursday.
Mottley’s Barbados Labor Party seemed to have secured all 30 seats in the House of Assembly, the lower house of the island’s Parliament which would give the island's first female leader a second term as prime minister. A majority of 16 seats was required for a win.
“The people of this nation have spoken with one voice, decisively, unanimously and clearly,” she said in her celebratory speech before dawn on Thursday to a large crowd clad in red shirts.
Mottley, who pledged to focus on issues including financial security, nutrition, renewable energy projects and housing, said the island faces serious challenges in the next 10 to 15 years.
Carla Natalie Barnett, the secretary general of the Caribbean Community, a 15-member regional trade bloc, congratulated Mottley on her “resounding victory.”
Mottley’s main opponent, Verla De Peiza of the Democratic Labor Party, conceded defeat.
“We’ve lost our democracy without intending it,” she told local media and called the voter turnout “depressive.”
“It was a reckless time to call an election,” she said.
Mottley was criticized for calling a snap general election shortly after Barbados cut ties with Queen Elizabeth II in November and ceased to be a constitutional monarchy. The next elections had been scheduled for mid-2023.
More than 266,000 people were eligible to vote, but preliminary information suggeseds that only 50% participated. More than 5,700 were unable to vote because of COVID-19 infections, prompting one opposition candidate to seek an injunction prior to the election, which a court rejected.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.