Rose returns to St Thomas Municipal Corporation

Former Mayor of Morant Bay, Yvonne Rosemarie Shaw, has made a triumphant return to the St Thomas Municipal Corporation with a decisive victory for the People’s National Party (PNP) in yesterday’s by-election in Morant Bay.

Shaw’s win is seen by many as a boost to her candidacy in the upcoming parliamentary elections scheduled for next year.

Shaw, who has been known to switch political allegiances in the past, is now the PNP’s standard-bearer for the St Thomas Eastern seat. She is expected to challenge the Jamaica Labour Party’s (JLP) incumbent, Dr Michelle Charles, when the next general election is called.

With a preliminary count of 2,096 votes, Shaw defeated newcomer Winston Downie, vice principal of Paul Bogle High School, who garnered 1,978 votes. The voter turnout was 37 per cent.

Interestingly, Shaw contested the seat following the death of Rohan Bryan, the man who defeated her in the 2012 elections when she last represented the JLP. Bryan, formerly of the PNP, had won the seat in a narrow victory, and his untimely death in April this year created the vacancy. Bryan had successfully contested the February 2024 local government elections, defeating Wilbert Walker of the JLP by 423 votes.

Shaw, who was initially scheduled to vote at Lyssons Primary School at 10 a.m. yesterday, delayed her appearance until nearly 12:30 p.m. No explanation was provided for the delay. Reports indicated Shaw was grappling with tension in the division, which had reportedly started building as early as Thursday night. There were reports of gunfire and voter intimidation in the Lyssons area, prompting additional police and military presence to ensure security on election day.

Downie, who cast his vote shortly after midday at the Morant Bay Primary School, did not linger for long, instead opting to oversee his supporters’ activities in the division.

SLUGGISH VOTING PACE

The Morant Bay by-election saw a sluggish voting pace, with turnout at 13.63 per cent by 11:00 a.m. and 27.78 per cent by 2:00 p.m. At several polling stations, there were more election day workers present than voters, and tensions seemed to boil over into verbal confrontations.

At Lyssons Primary School, the site of the bulk of election-day activity, supporters from both parties were engaged in verbal exchanges. One PNP outside agent said, “Dean Shaw put on a worker’s vest and went inside the polling station, saying he heard that the PNP started a riot and asked us to go outside. There was no riot. We were simply shading from the sun and had to stay outside.”

At Morant Bay Primary School, tensions were also high, with a PNP supporter taunting a female JLP supporter, “You a go down with Downie,” as she passed by in her party colours.

Both political parties had high-profile figures on the ground to rally support.

JLP heavyweights such as Daryl Vaz, member of parliament for Portland Western; and Juliet Cuthbert-Flynn, member of parliament for St Andrew West Rural, were actively working to bolster Downie’s campaign.

Meanwhile, PNP supporters were buoyed by the presence of Member of Parliament for St Andrew South Eastern, Julian Robinson; and Member of Parliament for St Catherine Southern, Fitz Jackson.

andre.williams@gleanerjm.com