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St. Lucia: Elections upset as Opposition United Workers Party defeats Prime Minister Kenny Anthony and his SLP
The main Opposition United Workers Party (UWP) led by Allen Chastanet has won Monday’s general election denying Prime Minister Kenny Anthony an opportunity of leading his St. Lucia Labor Party (SLP) to a second consecutive 5 year term in office.
Preliminary results show that the UWP won 11 of the 17 seats at stake, reversing the results of the 2011 general election, when the SLP won by the same margin.
The general election was called months ahead of the November constitutional deadline by the outgoing Prime Minister.
The economy has been a dominant issue – with the SLP arguing that there had been improvements due to the introduction of the value added tax (VAT).
The incoming Prime Minister, Allen Chastanet and his UWP have opposed the VAT, promising voters to eliminate it and introduce an economic program that will provide relief to St. Lucians.
In his concession speech, Anthony indicated that he will be stepping down as leader of his SLP and will not become the leader of the opposition.