PNP mulls taking Holness win to Constituted Authority

Still smarting from last Wednesday's general election defeat, the People's National Party (PNP) is preparing a case to have the Constituted Authority examine the circumstances under which Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness was declared winner of St Andrew West Central.

Holness won the seat by 2,101 votes over the PNP's Paul Buchanan, securing his eighth consecutive victory in the constituency where he was first elected as a 25-year-old in 1997. On election night, Buchanan led Holness by 105 votes - 4,867 to 4,762 -- after 87 of the 105 ballot boxes were counted. However, by the end of the night, Holness pulled away with a decisive win, securing 7,054 votes to Buchanan's 4,953.

Holness, leader of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), picked up 2,292 votes from the final 18 boxes, while Buchanan managed only 86.

However, the PNP appears to be suspicious about the numbers, particularly as it relates to the prime minister rebounding from a losing position to win by such a wide margin. Addressing his first media conference since the election loss, PNP President Mark Golding said a magisterial recount "is unlikely to change the outcome in any of the seats" that were narrowly won by the JLP. However, he stressed that the party has questions about what took place in St Andrew West Central and is closely reviewing the matter.

"The nature of the irregularities that took place there is being carefully scrutinised in anticipation of a case being brought to the constituted authority for appropriate relief," he said.

Golding admitted the party does not have "sufficient evidence" to mount a direct challenge to the overall election results. He nonetheless raised concerns about "the extensive and vulgar use of state resources to impact the outcome of the election".

He further revealed that the PNP has received "numerous reports of widespread suppression of PNP votes across marginal constituencies". The party, he said, plans to deploy teams to verify those claims while it conducts a broader appraisal of its performance in the polls.

General Secretary Dr Dayton Campbell added that based on reports received, there is sufficient evidence to support the party's claim of voter suppression, including allegations of people being paid not to vote for the PNP.

Noting that the PNP came within one per cent of winning the popular vote, Campbell argued that the party achieved the feat despite "the suppression that took place by the Labour Party and the delayed voting by the ECJ that caused people to leave the polling station and not vote".

The Constituted Authority plays a central role in overseeing and administering elections. It investigates complaints related to electoral fraud and voting irregularities.

Holness has traditional outperformed his PNP opponents in two of the three polling divisions, Olympic Gardens and Seivwright Gardens, but has trailed in the Molynes Gardens area.