The people of the British Virgin Islands went to the polls on February 25 and the results of the elections show that the opposition party, Virgin Islands Party (VIP) have won the elections. As it stands, the people of the British Virgin Islands will be having an entirely new administration.
Out of the 13 seats in the House of Assembly, the Andrew Fahie led VIP took 8 seats. It is on record that of the 8 newly elected politicians, 7 have never run for office before now. The remaining seats were shared between the National Democratic Party (NDP), Progressive Virgin Islands Movement, and Progressive United.
The NDP led the previous government but this time was able to win just 3 seats in the House of Assembly while the last two parties won one apiece. The VIP leader, Fahie, took to the party’s official Facebook page to appreciate the faith placed in the party by the people of the country. He vowed on behalf of his party to ensure that the lives of the people will be better and a more enduring community will be built.
This election was very historic in the British Virgin Islands for so many reasons. For one, there was a record high for the number of first-timers running for office. Secondly, this was the first time an electronic tabulating system was used during the elections. It is also the first time the ruling party will not have its leader as part of the House of Assembly. The voters’ turnout was quite high at 65.26%.
The elections which should have held in August were shifted forward to fill the void left by the demise of Delores Christopher who used to represent the Fifth Electoral District. They were moved forward by the outgoing Premier, Dr. Orlando Smith.
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