Tuesday’s general election in The Bahamas follows Prime Minister Philip Davis’ decision to dissolve Parliament on April 8 and call a snap vote, setting Bahamians on their way to polling places across the islands.
Davis, whose Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) is seeking to continue its leadership, dissolved the chamber and announced the election ahead of what voters now face on Tuesday. The PLP is running on its record since taking office in 2021, while the opposition and independents present competing claims about what needs to change.
The main opposition party, the Free National Movement (FNM), is led by Michael Pintard, who took over after the party’s defeat in the September 2021 general election. Dr. Hubert Minnis, a former prime minister and former leader of the FNM, is also running as an independent candidate.
In the House of Assembly election, the political party that wins a majority of the 41 seats will form the next government. With voting under way, the outcome will determine who gets the mandate to govern after the snap election.
Campaigning in the weeks leading up to Election Day focused on issues including the condition of the public healthcare system, the country’s crime rate, the cost of living and immigration concerns. The PLP sought to remind voters of its accomplishments since 2021, while the FNM promised to address what it said the incumbents got wrong.
The Coalition of Independents (COI), which has emerged as an alternative to the two major political parties, has sought to educate voters about social conditions and to expose what it calls corruption in government, according to COI leader Lincoln Bain. Bain told The Associated Press on Tuesday: “We think that Bahamians are ready for something different.”
International election observers have arrived in The Bahamas, which has a population of more than 300,000, to oversee the electoral process. The Commonwealth, the Organization of American States and the regional trade bloc CARICOM have confirmed sending observers.