34% voter turnout in LGE

Turnout for the past five local government elections was respectively: 38.7 percent (1999); 37.9 percent (2003); 39.1 percent (2010); 43.6 percent (2013); and 34.3 percent (2016). Last Monday, 362,254 persons cast valid votes, out of a registered electorate in Trinidad of 1,054,817 voters. Each party could claim victory on Election Day. The People’s National Movement (PNM) won seven and a half corporations (the latter being the tied Sangre Grande Regional Corporation), ahead of the United National Congress (UNC) winning six and a half, but the UNC won half of Sangre Grande, previously a PNM corporation.

Likewise, Rowley boasted that the PNM won the most seats - 82 ahead of the 55 seats won by the UNC - although facing a net loss of one seat to the UNC, compared to 2013. However, the EBC results yesterday showed that the UNC won the popular vote. Across all seats in Trinidad, the UNC won 180,758 votes, just ahead of the PNM’s 174,754 votes.

Of the smaller parties the Congress of the People (COP) nationwide won 1,803 votes, ahead of the Movement for Social Justice (MSJ) on 790 votes, Independent Liberal Party (ILP) on 343 votes, National Solidarity Assembly (NSA) on 804 votes, NDP on 244 votes and IDP on 602 votes. The total tally for persons standing independent of any party was 1,071 votes.

While the UNC tied for seats four-four with the PNM in Sangre Grande, speculation is that the UNC could have won the corporation outright but for possible vote-splitting by a new, smaller party, the NSA, whose base like the UNC is thought to be ex-sugar workers. In the seat of Sangre Grande North West, the PNM won by a margin of just 40 votes (PNM 1,351 and UNC 1,311), less than the NSA’s tally of 78 votes.

Geographically, the highest turnout occurred at Mayaro/Rio Claro (49.8 percent) and Siparia (41.8 percent). The lowest turnout was Diego Martin (21.8 percent) and Port-of-Spain (22.78 percent).

PNM PRO Stuart Young told Newsday that the 34 percent turnout was nowhere near the 17 to 20 percent turnout being proffered by some observers on Election Night. Saying that local election turnouts are usually less than those of general elections, he said, “This 34 percent is within expected parameters”.