1989 Jamaican general election

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
1989 Jamaican general election
Jamaica
← 1983 9 February 1989 (1989-02-09) 1993 →

All 60 seats in the House of Representaitves
Turnout78.38% (Increase 75.70pp)
Party Leader % Seats +/–
PNP Michael Manley 56.60 45 New
JLP Edward Seaga 43.32 15 −45
This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below.
Prime Minister before Prime Minister after election
Edward Seaga
JLP
Michael Manley
PNP

General elections were held in Jamaica on 9 February 1989. The result was a victory for the People's National Party, which won 45 of the 60 seats. Voter turnout was 78%.[1]

They were the first seriously contested elections since 1980, as the PNP had boycotted the 1983 snap elections to protest the refusal of the ruling Jamaican Labour Party to update the electoral roll amid allegations of voter fraud.

Prime Minister Edward Seaga announced the election date on 15 January at a rally in Kingston,[2] with the emergency conditions caused by Hurricane Gilbert in 1988 forcing an extension of the parliamentary term beyond its normal five-year mandate.[3]

Campaign[edit]

The election date and tone of the election were shaped in part by Hurricane Gilbert, which made landfall in September 1988 and decimated the island. The hurricane caused almost $1 billion worth of damage to the island, with banana and coffee crops wiped out and thousands of homes destroyed. Both parties engaged in campaigning through the distribution of relief supplies, a hallmark of the Jamaican patronage system. Political commentators noted that prior to the hurricane, Edward Seaga and the JLP trailed Michael Manley and the PNP by twenty points in opinion polls. The ability to provide relief as the party in charge allowed Seaga to improve his standing among voters and erode the inevitability of Manley's victory. However, scandals related to the relief effort cost Seaga and the JLP some of the gains made immediately following the hurricane. Scandals that emerged included National Security Minister Errol Anderson personally controlling a warehouse full of disaster relief supplies and candidate Joan Gordon-Webley distributing American-donated flour in sacks with her picture on them.[4]

The election was characterized by a narrower ideological difference between the two parties on economic issues. Michael Manley facilitated his comeback campaign by moderating his leftist positions and admitting mistakes made as Prime Minister, saying he erred when he involved government in economic production and had abandoned all thoughts of nationalizing industry. He cited the PNP's desire to continue the market-oriented policies of the JLP government, but with a more participatory approach.[5] Prime Minister Edward Seaga ran on his record of economic growth and the reduction of unemployment in Jamaica, using the campaign slogan "Don't Let Them Wreck It Again" to refer to Manley's tenure as Prime Minister.[6] Seaga during his tenure as Prime Minister emphasized the need to tighten public sector spending and cut close to 27,000 public sector jobs in 1983 and 1984.[7] He shifted his plans as elections neared with a promise to spend J$1 billion on a five-year Social Well-Being Programme, which would build new hospitals and schools in Jamaica.[8]

Foreign policy also played a role in the 1989 election. Prime Minister Edward Seaga emphasized his relations with the United States, a relationship which saw Jamaica receiving considerable economic aid from the U.S and additional loans from international institutions.[9] Manley pledged better relations with the United States while at the same time pledging to restore diplomatic relations with Cuba that had been cut under Seaga.[6] With Manley as Prime Minister, Jamaican-American relations had significantly frayed as a result of Manley's economic policies and close relations with Cuba.[10]

The personalities of the two party leaders helped shape the 1989 campaign. While Seaga was portrayed as a good manager with a cold public demeanor, Manley was perceived as a person with suspect managerial skills but exceptional personal magnetism. Seaga summarized the two personalities by saying, "Some people prefer to have a husband who will provide for them and give them security. Others are looking for a lover to give them joy."[6]

Results[edit]

PartyVotes%Seats+/–
People's National Party473,75456.6045+45
Jamaica Labour Party362,58943.3215–45
Independents6280.0800
Total836,971100.00600
Valid votes836,97198.99
Invalid/blank votes8,5141.01
Total votes845,485100.00
Registered voters/turnout1,078,76078.38
Source: Nohlen

By constituency[edit]

Constituency Jamaica Labour Party People's National Party Independents
Candidate Votes % Candidate Votes % Candidate Votes %
Kingston Western Edward Seaga 11,744 81.79 Clinton Davy 2,615 18.21
Kingston Central Olivia Grange 5,758 43.02 Ralph Brown 7,627 56.98
Kingston East & Port Royal Granclett Cadienhead 2,392 19.17 Michael Manley 10,084 80.83
St. Andrew West Rural Kenneth Baugh 8,074 49.70 Claude Clarke 8,170 50.30
St. Andrew Western Lee R. Clarke 7,223 41.13 Onel Williams 10,298 58.64 Don Jenkins 40 0.23
St. Andrew West Central Ferdinand Yap 10,458 44.39 Arnold Nicholson 13,102 55.61
St. Andrew East Central Merlene Heholt 4,088 26.61 Arthur Jones 11,276 73.39
St. Andrew South Western Royland Williams 396 2.09 Portia Simpson 18,577 97.91
St. Andrew Southern Earlston Spencer 5,092 25.60 Hartley E. Jones 14,798 74.40
St. Andrew South Eastern Ryan G. Peralto 5,371 45.41 Easton W.X. Douglas 6,444 54.48 Jasmin A. Brown 14 0.12
St. Andrew Eastern Edmund Bartlett 6,802 54.85 Oswald S. Seymour 5,599 45.15
St. Andrew North Central Karl Samuda 7,017 57.70 Shirley-Ann Eaton 5,144 42.30
St. Andrew North Western Derrick C. Smith 5,392 51.10 Jepthah V. Ford 5,159 48.90
St. Andrew East Rural Joan A. Gordon-Webley 6,686 51.10 E.G.G. Barrett 7,070 48.90
St. Thomas Western Errol Anderson 9,390 54.55 Ronald G. Lampart 7,822 45.45
St. Thomas Eastern Pearnel Charles 7,930 51.12 Franklyn Sephestine 7,462 48.10 Roosevelt S. Barrant 122 0.79
Portland Eastern Dennis M. Wright 6,426 42.21 H. Sam Lawrence 8,799 57.79
Portland Western St. Clair O. Shirley 5,977 46.60 Errol F. Ennis 6,848 53.40
St. Mary South Eastern Alva Ross 6,476 46.94 Harry G. Douglas 7,319 53.06
St. Mary Central Neville G. Murray 4,166 31.68 Horace A. Clarke 8,983 68.32
St. Mary Western Hyacinth M. Knight 6,520 41.77 Terrence D. Gillette 9,089 58.23
St. Ann South Eastern Kern Christian 3,290 26.65 Seymour Mullings 9,056 73.35
St. Ann North Eastern Patricia Pink 6,227 39.51 N.W. Manley Bowen 9,532 60.49
St. Ann North Western Ernest A. Smith 6,639 46.35 Burchell Whiteman 7,684 53.65
St. Ann South Western Neville Gallimore 6,916 59.45 Newton Richards 4,717 40.55
Trelawny Northern Keith E. Russell 6,874 40.49 Desmond Leakey 10,103 59.51
Trelawny Southern Brascoe L. Lee 5,662 49.24 Lyndel L. Frater 5,837 50.76
St. James East Central Godfrey G. Dyer 4,598 44.84 Violet Neilson 5,656 55.16
St. James North Western Charles E. Sinclair 6,108 41.10 Carl E. Miller 8,753 58.90
St. James West Central Winston Watt 5,165 40.30 Patrick Rose-Green 7,651 59.70
St. James Southern Ephraim A. Morgan 3,858 31.39 Derrick F.L. Kellier 7,980 64.93 Princess E. Vernon 452 3.68
Hanover Eastern Franklin D. Jackson 5,269 44.02 Aston S. King 6,700 55.98
Hanover Western Horace Chang 6,096 41.54 Benjamin A.L. Clare 8,578 58.46
Westmoreland Western Russell O. Hammond 4,335 33.12 Kenneth McNeill 8,755 66.88
Westmoreland Central Carlton C.C. Jones 4,324 35.03 Enoch C.K. Blythe 8,021 64.97
Westmoreland North Eastern Astil Sangster 4,331 37.47 Headly Cunningham 7,229 62.53
Westmoreland South Eastern Percival LaTouche 3,999 36.00 P.J. Patterson 7,108 64.00
St. Elizabeth North Western Neville B. Lewis 6,656 52.13 Caswell Daley 6,111 47.87
St. Elizabeth North Eastern Hugh A. Dawes 5,433 37.53 Sydney R. Pagon 9,042 62.47
St. Elizabeth South Western Derrick Sangster 6,478 46.41 Donald B. Buchanan 7,479 53.59
St. Elizabeth South Eastern Jeremy A. Palmer 6,144 42.95 Derrick A. Rochester 8,162 57.05
Manchester Southern Lloyd G. Bent 5,604 39.41 Douglas Manley 8,615 60.59
Manchester Central Cecil Charlton 6,655 47.41 John Junor 7,384 52.59
Manchester North Western Stafford S. Haughton 4,420 36.21 Dean A. Peart 7,787 63.79
Clarendon North Western Audley Shaw 6,675 47.63 Calvin S. Lyn 7,339 52.37
Clarendon Northern J.A.G. Smith 6,135 46.65 Horace Daley 7,015 53.35
Clarendon North Central Errol A. Dunkley 6,429 56.77 N.C. Bachelor 4,895 43.23
Clarendon Central Lester Michael Henry 6,768 51.85 Donnal M. Scott-Bhoorasingh 6,286 48.15
Clarendon South Western Arthur H.W. Williams 4,788 36.56 O.D. Ramtallie 8,307 63.46
Clarendon South Eastern Hugh Shearer 7,299 50.01 Emanuel Cousins 7,295 49.99
St. Catherine North Western John Franklyn 3,959 30.78 Robert D. Pickersgill 8,904 59.22
St. Catherine South Western Michael A. Williams 7,044 44.88 Rudyard E. Lawson 8,652 55.22
St. Catherine Southern Thomas Tavares-Finson 7,848 48.52 Hugh Small 8,325 51.48
St. Catherine Central Bruce Golding 12,062 63.77 Vincent L. Edwards 6,852 36.23
St. Catherine South Eastern Jeanette Grant-Woodham 5,651 40.83 Carl Rattray 8,189 59.17
St. Catherine East Central Ruby C. Walcott 5,070 34.22 Keith D. St. A. Knight 9,744 65.78
St. Catherine West Central Enid Bennett 6,340 54.70 Enoch L. Blake 5,250 45.30
St. Catherine North Eastern Anthony S.R. Johnson 5,740 55.49 Phyllis Mitchell 4,604 44.51
Source: Electoral Commission of Jamaica

References[edit]

  1. ^ Dieter Nohlen (2005) Elections in the Americas: A data handbook, Volume I, p430 ISBN 978-0-19-928357-6
  2. ^ "JAMAICA ELECTION SET FOR FEBRUARY". The New York Times. 17 January 1989. Retrieved 19 September 2016.
  3. ^ Tom Lansford (2014) Political Handbook of the World 2014, p717 ISBN 1483333272
  4. ^ "Showdown in Jamaica". The New York Times. 27 November 1988. Retrieved 19 September 2016.
  5. ^ Garrity, Michele and Picard, Louis A. "Policy Reform for Sustainable Development in the Caribbean", p. 39. ISBN 4274900991, 9784274900990.
  6. ^ a b c "Personalities Of Candidates Key Issue In Jamaica Election". Archived from the original on 2016-09-19. Retrieved 19 September 2016.
  7. ^ "Jamaica Gleaner News - On development and losing elections - Sunday | March 14, 2010". Mobile.jamaica-gleaner.com. Retrieved 2016-09-24.
  8. ^ "Jamaica Gleaner - Missed opportunities: From old partners to new partnerships - Sunday | January 11, 2004". Archived from the original on 2014-07-14. Retrieved 2015-05-07.
  9. ^ Ronald T. Libby (1990). "The United States and Jamaica: Playing the American Card" (PDF). Latin American Perspectives. pp. 86–109. Caribbean Crisis and Global Restructuring
  10. ^ "Jamaica - Relations with the United States, Britain, and Canada". Retrieved 19 September 2016.