Snap general elections were held in Saint Kitts and Nevis on 5 August 2022, following the decision of incumbent prime minister Timothy Harris to dissolve the parliament on 11 May. Snap elections are constitutionally required within ninety days following the dissolution of parliament.[1][2][3]
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The elections were the first in the country with a female party leader, with businesswoman and environmental consultant Janice Daniel-Hodge leading the Nevis Reformation Party (NRP), which was founded by her father, former Premier of Nevis and pro-Nevis secessionist Simeon Daniel.[4] However, the NRP failed to win a seat, despite seeing a small overall increase in its vote share.
The elections brought the Saint Kitts and Nevis Labour Party, led by Terrance Drew, back to power for the first time since their loss in 2015. The People's Action Movement, part of the outgoing ruling alliance in Harris government, was reduced to only one seat, their worst result since 2004, while their vote share of 16.23% was the worst in party history.
Background
editThe Team Unity alliance first came to power in the 2015 elections, and won a second term in 2020. In 2022, tensions between PM Harris and his coalition partners led to them filing a motion of no confidence against him. The now in-opposition parties asked Governor-General Sir Tapley Seaton to dismiss Harris, prompting Seaton to remind them he does not have this power under the federation constitution. Harris responded by calling for the dissolution of parliament before the motion of no confidence was held.[5]
Electoral system
editEleven of the fifteen seats in the National Assembly are elected, with the other three members appointed by the Governor-General at some point after the elections and one seat held by the Attorney-General.[6] The eleven elected seats are elected in single-member constituencies using plurality voting.[7]
Parties and Candidates
editSix parties are contesting the election, three parties each contesting all seats in St. Kitts and three parties each contesting seats in Nevis:[8]
- People’s Labour Party (PLP): contesting all eight seats in St Kitts
- St Kitts-Nevis Labour Party (SKNLP): contesting all eight seats in St Kitts
- People’s Action Movement (PAM): contesting all eight seats in St Kitts (One Movement Alliance)
- Concerned Citizens Movement (CCM): contesting all three seats in Nevis (One Movement Alliance)
- Nevis Reformation Party (NRP): contesting all three seats in Nevis
- Moral Restoration Movement (MRM): contesting two of the three seats in Nevis
Endorsements
edit- Politicians
Opinion polls
edit| Date[nb 1] | Pollster | Sample size | PAM | CCM | PLP | SKNLP | NRP | MRM | Govt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 Aug 2022 | 2022 general election | – | 1 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| July 26, 2022 | Don Anderson/Market Research Services Limited (MRSL)[10][11] | 4000 | – | 1 | – | – | 2 | 0 | N/A |
| July 23, 2022 | Peter Wickham/Caribbean Development Research Services (CADRES)[12] | N/A | – | – | 4 (+2) | – | – | 0 | N/A |
| 21 Apr 2022 | Team Unity dissolves; splits into the PLP and One Movement (PAM & CCM) | ||||||||
| 5 June 2020 | 2020 general election | – | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | – | 9 |
Results
edit | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | |
| Saint Kitts and Nevis Labour Party | 13,438 | 45.75 | 6 | +4 | |
| People's Labour Party | 5,036 | 17.14 | 1 | –1 | |
| People's Action Movement | 4,737 | 16.13 | 1 | –3 | |
| Concerned Citizens' Movement | 3,473 | 11.82 | 3 | 0 | |
| Nevis Reformation Party | 2,616 | 8.91 | 0 | 0 | |
| Moral Restoration Movement | 67 | 0.23 | 0 | New | |
| Unity Labour Party | 5 | 0.02 | 0 | New | |
| Independents | 3 | 0.01 | 0 | 0 | |
| Appointed and ex-officio members | 4 | 0 | |||
| Total | 29,375 | 100.00 | 15 | 0 | |
| Valid votes | 29,375 | 99.39 | |||
| Invalid/blank votes | 179 | 0.61 | |||
| Total votes | 29,554 | 100.00 | |||
| Registered voters/turnout | 50,973 | 57.98 | |||
| Source: SKN Times | |||||
Elected MPs
editAftermath
editTerrance Drew was elected Prime Minister of Saint Kitts and Nevis. The Drew ministry was sworn in on 15 August 2022.[13]
Notes
edit- ^ These are the survey dates of the poll, or if the survey dates are not stated, the date the poll was released.
References
edit- ^ "St Kitts and Nevis: Six ministers suspended as Timothy Harris dissolves parliament". WIC News. 2022-05-11. Retrieved 2022-05-11.
- ^ "St. Kitts/Nevis Parliament dissolved as PM Harris fires government ministers". CNW Network. 2022-05-10. Retrieved 2022-05-11.
- ^ "Election bell rung, St Kitts-Nevis returning to the polls on August 5". Loop Caribbean News. 17 July 2022. Retrieved 19 July 2022.
- ^ "Junior Minister of Gender Affairs on Nevis commends Dr. Janice Daniel-Hodge, first woman to lead a political party in SKN". NIA - Nevis Island Administration. 2020-09-14. Retrieved 2022-08-03.
- ^ Dixon, Loshaun (2022-05-27). "Team Unity: How it started, where it went wrong". The St Kitts Nevis Observer. Retrieved 2022-05-28.
- ^ Team Unity declared official winners of St Kitts Election Archived 2015-02-20 at the Wayback Machine The Daily Observer, 17 February 2015
- ^ Electoral system IPU
- ^ McLeod, Sheri-Kae (2022-07-28). "St Kitts candidates nominated for August 5 general election in carnival style". CNW Network. Retrieved 2022-08-03.
- ^ "| By The Nevis Reformation Party | Facebook". Retrieved 3 August 2022.
- ^ "Scientific Polling Signals a Win for the NRP in Upcoming Elections". ZIZ Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 2022-08-03.
- ^ "#SKNElection: Pollster gives PLP the slight lead ahead of Aug 5 polls | Loop Caribbean News". Loop News. Retrieved 2022-08-03.
- ^ "PM HARRIS' PEOPLES LABOUR PARTY HAS THE MOMENTUM GOING INTO UPCOMING ELECTIONS ON ST.KITTS-NEVIS SAYS POLLSTER PETER WICKHAM". Retrieved 2022-08-03.
- ^ "New SKN Labour Party Cabinet Sworn-In". The St Kitts Nevis Observer. 2022-08-15. Retrieved 2022-08-18.