Elections on February 11, PM announces

Prime Minister Mia Mottley announced late Saturday that she has advised President Jeffrey Bostic that “come Monday, the 19th of January, the Parliament of Barbados shall be dissolved,” setting the island on course for a general election on Wednesday, February 11.

Speaking to supporters in Bridgetown, on the heels of the nomination of former Democratic Labour Party Cabinet minister Michael Lashley as the BLP candidate for the City of Bridgetown, Mottley said she had visited the President “just after four o’clock this evening” and instructed officials to finalise election preparations.

She told party and government officials that “the writs for elections will be issued, having been proven and approved by the honourable Attorney General,” and asked that “the writs [be] prepared to deliver to His Excellency tomorrow.”

Mottley gave the timetable for the campaign: “nomination day shall be Tuesday, 27th of January,” and, she said, “when we are satisfied that candidates have been legitimately nominated and there are contests to be had, that polling day shall be Wednesday, the 11th of February.”

Invoking a unifying slogan for her party, the Prime Minister urged supporters to stand together, repeatedly calling for the Barbados Labour Party to be strong, and saying that “when we work together, we build that platform that can be fruitful”.

She framed the dissolution as a democratic renewal saying, if a leader wishes to continue, “you must come back to us for a new mandate”.

Mottley also highlighted recent parliamentary action, noting that “only yesterday, we laid in Parliament a bill to vest ownership in the housing estates… to vest over 200 people with titles,” a move she described as delivering on past promises.

Election officials and party organisers now have short timelines to complete nomination and voting logistics ahead of the January 27 nominations and February 11 polling date. (BT)