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Jamaican prime minister fights for her job amid tough times Jamaican prime minister fights for her job amid tough times
(about 2 hours later)
KINGSTON, Jamaica — The prime minister of Jamaica is fighting to keep her job amid high crime and unemployment in the largest English-speaking country in the Caribbean. KINGSTON, Jamaica — The prime minister of Jamaica was fighting to keep her job Thursday amid high crime and unemployment in the largest English-speaking country in the Caribbean.
Voters in Jamaica are choosing a new Parliament and polls show it is likely to be a close race between the ruling People’s National Party of Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller and the opposition Jamaica Labor Party. Voters in Jamaica were choosing a new Parliament and polls showed it was likely to be a close race between the ruling People’s National Party of Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller and the opposition Jamaica Labor Party.
There have been long lines at polling stations across the country Thursday. Police say arsonists set fire to a polling station in Hanover Parish on the island’s northwest corner before dawn. Voting was moved to another location and there have been no other major incidents reported. Simpson Miller predicted her party would retain power in the 21-seat Parliament as she urged voters to remain calm in a country that has seen election day violence in the past.
Simpson Miller became the country’s first female leader during her first term, which ended in 2007. Her second term started in 2011. “I want no intimidation. I want no trouble. I want everybody to go out and cast their vote in peace,” she said while voting in her Kingston constituency.
There were long lines at polling stations across the country.
Police said arsonists set fire to a polling station in Hanover Parish on the island’s northwest corner before dawn. Voting was moved to another location and no other major incidents were reported.
Simpson Miller became the country’s first female leader in 2006. That first term ended in 2007, but she returned as prime minister in 2011 amid a shrinking economy and one of the highest levels of debt relative to GDP in the world. Her government negotiated a $930 million aid package with the IMF.
The opposition, led by Andrew Holness, expected a far better showing than in 2011, when it was swept out by a 2-1 margin. “You are going to see a far more energized Jamaica Labor Party base than in 2011 because our members have been motivated by the issues we have raised in our campaign,” Holness said.
The opposition leader has pledged to make the economy more dynamic with income tax changes and other measures, a message that resonates with many in a country with widespread poverty and a youth unemployment rate above 30 percent.
“I’m voting for change,” said 72-year-old Velma Johnson as she waited to cast her ballot. “Wages are frozen and there’s a lot of arrogance about this government.”
Many Jamaicans are also fed up with one of the highest homicide rates in the world, mostly blamed on gangs. The country had at least 1,192 slayings in 2015, a roughly 20 percent increase from the previous year. By comparison, Chicago, which has roughly the same population as Jamaica at 2.7 million, had 468 killings in the same period.
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.