Opposition wins in Bermuda

HAMILTON, Bermuda – The opposition One Bermuda Alliance (OBA) on Monday night ended the 14-year term in office in Bermuda of the Progressive Labour Party (PLP) in a hotly contested general election in which Premier Paula Cox also lost her seat.

The OBA won the narrowest possible majority in the 36-seat local parliament -- 19 seats to the PLP’s 17. “It’s a new Bermuda and a new day in politics,” premier-elect Craig Cannonier declared at his party’s victory celebration.

Cox’s surprise defeat came at the hands of the OBA’s Glen Smith, who won by 93 votes to end Cox’s 16-year run as the representative for her Devonshire North West constituency.

“It’s disappointing but the voters spoke,” Cox said. “A good fight was waged by the Opposition and I think that they deserved their win.”

The OBA, fighting its first election, won the popular vote by a six-point margin, winning 52 percent of votes cast, compared to the PLP’s 46 percent, and independent candidates’ 2 percent.

By Caribbean News Now contributor