Community focus in St James North

With the general election now less than a month away, residents of St James North say they are generally pleased with their representation and have no objection to the early calling of elections on February 11. But they used the campaign to press the competing candidates on community-centred concerns they want addressed.

In Douglin Road, Weston, Marcia Jordan-Shepherd said she had no issue with the timing of the election. 

“She is the prime minister and she did what she had to do,” she said. “That’s no problem at all.” 

Reflecting on constituency representation, Jordan-Shepherd acknowledged past dissatisfaction but credited current Barbados Labour Party representative Chad Blackman with tangible improvements. 

“I personally never had a good representative in St James, honestly speaking, and since Mr Blackman get in here, he done a lot. He did the road in Weston, and repair a lot of houses in St James that I can see. So he did a lot for us,” she said. However, she pointed to lingering safety concerns, particularly for children.

 “I would like him to give us some road humps in the road because we have a park, and the kids just run out the park across the road; and we also want a bright light for the kids in the park if they stay late evenings into the night.”

Similar sentiments were expressed by Anderson Worrell of The Whim, St Peter, who said the early election call surprised some but suggested it reflected Mottley’s confidence. 

“It was a shock to a lot of people, and probably some people wasn’t looking for it as early…,” he said. Worrell also praised Blackman’s visibility, noting, “He always dropping in. Since before the by-election and so forth, he was around in the constituency and the areas and districts. To me, he’s actually a people’s person because he likes to know what is going on in the area and where we can improve.” 

As manager of an area cricket club, Worrell highlighted the need for youth infrastructure.

He said: “A lot of young boys and girls on the road and around the side of people’s houses play road tennis and they get a lot of interruptions with vehicles coming through. So what we would like to see is actually a road tennis and a basketball court near the pavilion.”

While some road patching had been done, “it could be done better,” he said, noting that Blackman had committed to working towards full repaving of the bad road.

In Rock Dundo, elderly voter Grethal Smith, who has mobility challenges, welcomed the early poll. 

“I feel very good about the election. I’m happy that it called so early, because that’s something that we were looking for,” she said. Smith expressed strong approval of her representation, describing it as “very good. It’s great, it’s wonderful.” 

She added: “I can call Mr Blackman anytime. He’s gonna turn up. If he don’t turn up, he’s gonna call me back. He’s gonna come to my home, make sure what is going on.” 

But Smith’s priority was greater inclusion for seniors. 

“I would like to get out of the house and go some places like go to churches, good activities, have a little picnics, where we can assemble with each other more often now that we are still around and living,” she said.

Longtime Sion Hill resident Marguerita Brathwaite framed the election timing in spiritual terms. “We cannot question the Master. If God put it to her and she received it, then so be,” she said. “It’s never too early to do nothing, and never too late to do nothing. So if the Master speak to she and she called elections, that is fine.” 

Her concerns, however, focused on social behaviour rather than politics. 

“I would like to see a lot of things improve with the behaviour of the young people. I would like to see all that there change up and let the world come back straight, no problems, no nothing,” she said, adding, “That’s all I would like to see before I go on to my Lord.”

Danielle Brathwaite also welcomed the early election. “Glad she called the elections early and get it over with,” she said, while calling for more structured programmes for youth. “Just more activities for the children, evening classes like hair braiding and weaving and different activities and stuff.”

Along Baird’s Road, voters raised persistent infrastructural and environmental issues. George Thornhill said he had “no problem” with the timing of the election. “Previously, elections were called earlier,” he said. While acknowledging that some potholes had been addressed, he pointed to ongoing flooding concerns. “That well I would like to clean. We had a little freak storm and my basement got washed out again.”

Angela Richards said her political loyalty was shaped by long-standing personal experience. “From my early days, I never changed. It still remain the same,” she said, referring to housing support her family received. 

“Since Blackman came in he was able to do a lot with the little time he had.” 

While she was generally satisfied with community development, “just in certain parts of the area we want the roads patching up a little bit”.

Labour candidate Blackman describing canvassing as a continuation of work already under way. He framed the campaign within a broader national and local development agenda. 

“This campaign is not just about the re-election of the party, but saying to the country, how do we now move forward in our development and ensuring that local development is a major part of the thrust of where we are,” he said. 

While expressing confidence, Blackman said complacency had no place in constituency politics. 

“You don’t take anything for granted. You continue to seek people’s support, seek their vote, and really just deliver,” he said, describing constituency leadership as service. “Leadership at the constituency level requires you to be the chief servant.” 

Reflecting on his tenure, he added: “I haven’t stopped canvassing. I haven’t stopped working,” pointing to housing assistance, employment opportunities, youth development and intergenerational collaboration. 

“There’s a buzz in St James North with respect to the future,” Blackman said.

St James North has been a BLP stronghold for all but five years over the past four decades. The constituency was first won by the BLP in 1981 under Lionel Craig, briefly shifted to the Democratic Labour Party in 1986 with Joseph Payne, and from 1991 was held by Rawle Eastmond, who secured successive victories in 1991, 1994, 1999, 2003, 2008 and 2013. In 2018, Edmund Hinkson captured the seat for the BLP and retained it in 2022. Following Hinkson’s resignation, Blackman won the 2025 by-election, continuing the party’s longstanding dominance in the constituency.

Challenging Blackman for the seat are Charles Worrell for the Democratic Labour Party and Steffanie Williams of Friends of Democracy.