Skerrit calls snap General Elections for December 6

Dominica’s Prime Minister, Roosevelt Skerrit has called a snap General Election more than two years before its due date.

In an address to the nation Skerrit announced that he had written to the President and advised him to “dissolve the House from November 7, 2022.”

“Nomination Day is November 18, 2022, and the people of Dominica will go to the polls on December 6, 2022.

In his address Skerrit told Dominicans “We need a national reset if we are to fully recover from COVID and put this country back on a trajectory of real and sustainable development over the next 10 to 15 years.

“Towards this end, we have done our own internal analysis. I started first with myself. I have been your chief servant for 22 years. I am eternally humbled and very grateful for the opportunity you have given me to serve. I hope that my efforts will be judged fairly and within context”, the Dominica leader said.

He said he has “listened to the views of all, and I have made a personal decision, which I have shared with some of my party elders. You have given me a mandate that constitutionally allows me to remain in office as your Prime Minister until April 2025. I do not intend to go beyond that date. I have run my race and I intend to finish the course, with Dominica safely back on a road of sustained progress and prosperity.”

Skerrit noted “That is why I am calling for a National Reset. I would like, however, to preside over a peaceful and dignified transition of Prime Ministerial leadership to someone of my party and my colleagues’ choosing. We have as a party and a government to prepare for the next five years of COVID rebuild and rebound. It will not be easy and will require commitment, dedication and perseverance”.

Skerrit further pointed out that “there is a need for a blend of experience, energy, youth and a positive attitude. This is the desired formula for carrying Dominica over the proverbial line”.

“It is my intention to stay on for another two and a half years if it is your will. But some of my colleagues who have been with me throughout this journey, and others whose stint in elective politics has been much shorter, have collectively agreed that the time for renewal of the team is NOW.

“We need a refreshed Dominica Labour Party team, for these very unpredictable, unprecedented and very challenging times”.

The Dominica leader said he will “lead a new-look Dominica Labour Party into fresh general elections that will be held at the soonest possible time” and he wants to begin with a fresh mandate in 2023 “given to a fresh Labour team to commence the work of building post-COVID Dominica”.

The governing Dominica Labour Party intends to reveal its new-look slate of candidates in Mahaut on Tuesday, November 8 (Antiguasnewsroom).