| Country | Antigua and Barbuda |
|---|---|
| Previous election | 2014 Antiguan general election |
| Previous year | 2014 |
| Election date | 21 March 2018 |
| Next election | 2023 Antiguan general election |
| Next year | 2023 |
| Seats for election | All 17 elected seats in the House of Representatives |
| Majority seats | 9 |
| Turnout | 76.51% ( 13.76pp) |
| Outgoing members | 14th legislature of Antigua and Barbuda#Members |
| Elected members | 15th legislature of Antigua and Barbuda#Members |
| Leader 1 | Gaston Browne |
| Party 1 | Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party |
| Last election 1 | 56.45%, 14 seats |
| Seats 1 | 15 |
| Seat change 1 | 1 |
| Popular vote 1 | 23,063 |
| Percentage 1 | 59.24% |
| Swing 1 | 2.79pp |
| Leader 2 | Harold Lovell |
| Party 2 | United Progressive Party |
| Last election 2 | 41.95%, 3 seats |
| Seats 2 | 1 |
| Seat change 2 | 2 |
| Popular vote 2 | 14,440 |
| Percentage 2 | 37.09% |
| Swing 2 | 4.86pp |
| Leader 3 | Trevor Walker |
| Party 3 | BPM |
| Last election 3 | 1.13%, 0 seats |
| Seats 3 | 1 |
| Seat change 3 | 1 |
| Popular vote 3 | 558 |
| Percentage 3 | 1.43% |
| Swing 3 | 0.30pp |
| Posttitle | Subsequent Prime Minister |
| Before election | Gaston Browne |
| Before party | Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party |
| After election | Gaston Browne |
| After party | Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party |
General elections were held in Antigua and Barbuda on 21 March 2018 to elect members to House of Representatives of the 15th Antigua and Barbuda Parliament.[1] Each of the 17 constituencies elected one Member of Parliament (MP).
The governing Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party led by Gaston Browne was returned to power, winning 15 of the 17 seats, increasing their majority by one seat.[2] The United Progressive Party, the official opposition, led by Harold Lovell, was reduced to a single seat and Lovell failed to be elected.[3]
Electoral system
The 17 elected members of the House of Representatives were elected in single-member constituencies by first-past-the-post voting; 16 of the seats were allocated for the island of Antigua and one for the island of Barbuda.[4] Barbudan electors were required to travel to Antigua to vote as a result of the aftermath of Hurricane Irma.[5]
Campaign
A total of 53 candidates contested the elections, representing seven parties. The Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party nominated a full slate of 17 candidates. The United Progressive Party nominated candidates only on the island of Antigua due to an electoral pact with the Barbuda People's Movement which stood only on the island of Barbuda. Together they fielded a candidate in every seat. The Democratic National Alliance (13) were the only other party to contest more than half the seats. The Antigua Barbuda True Labour Party and Go Green for Life both had two candidates, while the Barbuda People's Movement (affiliated to the United Progressive Party) and Missing Link VOP had a single candidate. A single independent candidate, Attorney-at-law Ralph Francis, contested the seat of Barbuda.[6][7]
Prime Minister Gaston Browne dissolved parliament fifteen months early. The main issues were the re-building and response to the 2017 Hurricane season, the Barbudan communal land ownership law, tourism resorts notably the Sandals Resorts, and a bribery scandal involving Browne.[8][9][3]
Results
By constituency
| Constituency | ABLP | UPP | DNA | GGL | BPM | Ind | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes | % | ||
| All Saints East and St. Luke | 1,369 | 47.65 | 1,379 | 47.99 | 106 | 3.68 | 7 | 0.24 | 2,873 | ||||
| All Saints West | 1,726 | 54.31 | 1,380 | 43.42 | 51 | 1.60 | 3,178 | ||||||
| Barbuda | 429 | 42.01 | 13 | 1.27 | 558 | 54.65 | 4 | 0.39 | 1,021 | ||||
| St. George | 2,083 | 56.68 | 1,452 | 39.51 | 121 | 3.29 | 3,675 | ||||||
| St. John's City East | 769 | 54.42 | 616 | 43.59 | 18 | 1.27 | 1,413 | ||||||
| St. John's City South | 895 | 69.60 | 355 | 27.60 | 23 | 1.78 | 1,286 | ||||||
| St. John's City West | 1,457 | 70.90 | 565 | 27.49 | 15 | 0.73 | 2,055 | ||||||
| St. John's Rural East | 2,175 | 65.90 | 975 | 29.55 | 134 | 4.06 | 3,300 | ||||||
| St. John's Rural North | 1,708 | 59.90 | 1,057 | 37.07 | 58 | 2.03 | 2,851 | ||||||
| St. John's Rural South | 1,502 | 62.53 | 755 | 31.43 | 38 | 1.58 | 2,402 | ||||||
| St. John's Rural West | 1,712 | 50.86 | 1,528 | 45.39 | 113 | 3.35 | 3,366 | ||||||
| St. Mary's North | 1,882 | 60.40 | 1,220 | 39.15 | 3,116 | ||||||||
| St. Mary's South | 942 | 50.08 | 911 | 48.43 | 18 | 0.96 | 1,881 | ||||||
| St. Paul | 1,315 | 59.42 | 836 | 37.78 | 53 | 2.39 | 2,213 | ||||||
| St. Peter | 1,736 | 73.12 | 577 | 24.30 | 2,374 | ||||||||
| St. Philip North | 884 | 70.49 | 355 | 28.30 | 1,254 | ||||||||
| St. Philip South | 479 | 49.79 | 459 | 47.71 | 6 | 0.62 | 962 | ||||||
| Total | 23,063 | 59.24 | 14,440 | 37.09 | 754 | 1.94 | 20 | 0.05 | 558 | 1.43 | 4 | 0.01 | 38,932 |
| Source: ABEC | |||||||||||||
References
- ^ "2018 Election Date Set For March 21" Daily Observer, 24 February 2018
- ^ ABLP wins 2018 General Elections Antigua Observer, 22 March 2018
- ^ "Snap election in Antigua puts Barbuda's communal land ownership on the ballot". The Guardian
- ^ Electoral system IPU
- ^ "Barbudans forced to travel to Antigua to vote as islanders fear for future of their land". The Telegraph
- ^ Elections in Antigua Archived 2 April 2018 at the Wayback Machine Caribbean Elections
- ^ 2018 candidates Archived 23 March 2018 at the Wayback Machine Caribbean Elections
- ^ "Antigua's Browne goes to the polls with bribery cloud over his head". Jamaica Observer
- ^ "Browne should not bring Sandals into election dogfight – Cranstone". Loop News Barbados. Archived from the original on 3 April 2019. Retrieved 24 March 2018.