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Snap general elections were held in Dominica on 6 December 2022. [1]
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Snap general elections were held in Dominica on 6 December 2022. [1]
On 6 November 2022 (three days after independence day), [2] Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit called a snap election "to ensure the continued renewal" of his government. Nomination day would be 18 November, and the election itself on 6 December. [1] The ruling Dominica Labour Party (DLP) announced its candidates on 8 November. [3]
Opposition parties, including former ruling parties United Workers' Party (UWP) and Dominica Freedom Party (DFP), and civil society organisations published an open letter on 9 November condemning Skerrit's call for elections. External observers, including the OAS, the Commonwealth Secretariat, Caricom, and the Caribbean Court of Justice, had made recommendations for electoral reform in Dominica in order to assuage concerns of voter fraud, among other reasons. By 2022, Skerrit had implemented none. [4] In light of this situation, the UWP and the DFP decided to boycott the elections and call on President Charles Savarin to reconvene the Assembly. [5] [6] In a separate letter, the nonpartisan Nature Island Dominica Civil Liberties Foundation (NIDCLF) pointed out irregularities in past elections which occurred due to the lack of reforms. [7]
A three-month-old party which did not sign the open letter, Team Unity Dominica (TUD), announced its readiness to take on the DLP, and asked for support from other opposition parties. [8] TUD general secretary Alex Bruno also claimed to be in contact with potential defectors from the DLP. [6] Individual independent candidates have also announced plans to contest the election. [9] [10]
Political scientist Peter Wickham pointed out that the call for elections occurred soon after the UWP's leader resigned, so that Skerrit would avoid competition from a new opposition leader. [11]
The 21 elected members of the House of Assembly are elected in single-member constituencies under first-past-the-post voting. A further nine members are either elected by the Assembly after it convenes or appointed by the President (five on the advice of the Prime Minister and four on the advice of the Leader of the Opposition) to be Senators; from there the President is chosen by the Assembly and the President appoints a Prime Minister. [12]
45 candidates were nominated, 19 of whom were independent candidates. [13] 10 of the incumbent DLP members were not nominated for a new term. [3]
In six constituencies, the DLP nominee was the only candidate, winning by default. PM Skerrit and Health Minister Irving McIntyre were re-elected in this manner. The remaining four were new nominees. [14]
The Commonwealth Secretariat, Organization of American States (OAS), Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Latin American Council of Electoral Experts (LACEE) sent election observers with the Commonwealth of Nations concluding that "election day and the pre-election atmosphere were largely peaceful and voters were free to exercise their franchise, the results of which are a collective will of those who voted. They also commended Electoral Office and its staff on their performance during the electoral process," noting that "while wholly consistent with the Constitution, the announcement of the snap elections on 6 November created certain challenges for some stakeholders." [15] [16] [17]
| Party | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dominica Labour Party | 15,214 | 82.38 | 19 | +1 | |
| Team Unity Dominica | 153 | 0.83 | 0 | New | |
| Independents | 3,102 | 16.80 | 2 | New | |
| Total | 18,469 | 100.00 | 21 | 0 | |
| Valid votes | 18,469 | 96.87 | |||
| Invalid/blank votes | 597 | 3.13 | |||
| Total votes | 19,066 | 100.00 | |||
| Registered voters/turnout | 60,330 | 31.60 | |||
| Source: Electoral Office | |||||
Elections in Dominica have been taking place since 1832. Dominica elects on national level a legislature. The House of Assembly has 32 members, 21 members elected for a five-year term in single-seat constituencies, 9 appointed senators, the Speaker and 1 ex officio member. A head of state—the president—is elected by the House of Assembly.
The Dominica Freedom Party (DFP) is a conservative political party in Dominica. It shares much of the same socially and economically conservative principles as the Conservative Party in the UK. The party has been led by Bernard Hurtault since 2021.
The United Workers' Party is a centrist political party in Dominica. As of the 2022 general election, the party is not represented in the House of Assembly of Dominica, after boycotting the general election. The past Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly is Lennox Linton.
Charles Angelo Savarin, DAH is a politician from Dominica who served as President of Dominica from 2013 to 2023. He is a member of the Dominica Labour Party and served for a time as Minister for National Security, Immigration, Labour and the Public Service.
The House of Assembly is the legislature of Dominica. It is established by Chapter III of the Constitution of Dominica, and together with the President of Dominica constitutes Dominica's Parliament. The House is unicameral, and consists of twenty-one Representatives, nine senators, and the Attorney General as an ex officio member. The Speaker of the House becomes the thirty-second member if chosen from outside the membership of the House.
Dominica officially the Commonwealth of Dominica, is an island country in the Caribbean. The capital, Roseau, is located on the western side of the island. It is geographically situated as part of the Windward Islands chain in the Lesser Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean Sea. Dominica's closest neighbours are two constituent territories of the European Union, the overseas departments of France, Guadeloupe to the northwest and Martinique to the south-southeast. Dominica comprises a land area of 750 km2 (290 sq mi), and the highest point is Morne Diablotins, at 1,447 m (4,747 ft) in elevation. Its population was 71,293 at the 2011 census.
Ronald Milner Green is a Dominican politician who has served as the head of the United Workers' Party (UWP). In that capacity, Green was also the Leader of the Opposition of Dominica from 2005 until 2009, when he lost his seat in the House of Assembly in the general election. Green is now serving in the Assembly as an appointed senator.
Julien Bentley Royer is a Dominican politician in the Dominica Labour Party and a former schoolteacher. He served briefly as a senator in the Dominica House of Assembly in 2010, and has twice been an unsuccessful candidate for an elected seat.
Hector John is a Dominican politician in the United Workers' Party (UWP). He was the Leader of the Opposition, from 2010 to 2014 and was the youngest ever to hold that position. He was first elected as a Representative to the House of Assembly in 2009.
Dayton Baptiste is a Dominican politician in the Dominica Labour Party, and a former police officer in Antigua. He served briefly as an appointed senator in the Dominica House of Assembly in 2010, and has twice been an unsuccessful candidate for an elected seat.
A by-election was held on 9 July 2010 in Dominica, to fill two seats in the House of Assembly that were declared vacant. The contested seats were both won by significant margins by the incumbent candidates, who were members of the opposition United Workers' Party.
Alvin Bernard is a Dominican economist and politician in the Dominica Labour Party. He has served in the House of Assembly since 2010.
Norris Prevost is a Dominican politician in the United Workers' Party. He has served in the House of Assembly of Dominica since 1990.
Ezekiel Bazil is a Dominican politician who has served in the House of Assembly of Dominica since 2010. He is the current president of the United Workers' Party.
General elections were held in Dominica on 8 December 2014 to elect the 21 members of the House of Assembly. Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit announced the election date on 5 November 2014 and Nomination Day was held on 19 November. Under Dominica's electoral system, the Prime Minister has the authority to call elections at any time and is only required to give a minimum of twenty-five days' notice.
Lennox Irving Linton is a Dominican politician in the United Workers' Party (UWP). He was first elected as the Representative for the Marigot constituency in the House of Assembly of Dominica on 8 December 2014. He served as Leader of the Opposition from 22 December 2014 until the 6 December 2022 snap general election and as Leader of UWP from 1st September 2013 until his resignation on 3 October 2022. He currently serves as President of the United Worker’s Party. He is a former journalist, radio presenter, party leader and corporate executive.
General elections were held in Dominica on 6 December 2019. The elections were constitutionally due by March 2020, but had been widely expected to take place before the end of 2019. The result was a landslide victory for the ruling Dominica Labour Party, which won 18 of the 21 elected seats, gaining three seats. With the DLP winning a fifth consecutive election, DLP leader Roosevelt Skerrit remained Prime Minister.
General elections were held in Saint Lucia on 26 July 2021, having been constitutionally required by 12 October 2021. Voters elected all 17 members of the House of Assembly. The result was a victory for the opposition Saint Lucia Labour Party, which won 13 of the 17 seats in the House, while the ruling United Workers Party lost nine of its eleven seats, its worst result since 1997. It was the fourth consecutive election in which the incumbent government was defeated.
Anette Thomas-Sanford is a Dominican nurse and politician. She served as a Senator in the House of Assembly from 10 February 2020 to 6 December 2022 for the opposition United Workers' Party.
