General elections were held in Antigua and Barbuda on 21 March 2018 to elect members to

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

of the 15th Antigua and Barbuda Parliament. Each of the 17 constituencies elected one Member of Parliament (MP). The governing

Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party The Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party (ABLP) is a political party in Antigua and Barbuda. The current leader of the party is Gaston Browne, who serves as the Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda. The party had previously been led by Lester Bird ...

led by Gaston Browne was returned to power, winning 15 of the 17 seats, increasing their majority by one seat. The United Progressive Party, the official opposition, led by

Harold Lovell Harold Earl Edmund Lovell (born September 27, 1955) is a politician from Antigua and Barbuda. He was the Minister of Finance, the Economy and Public Administration. He was also the minister of tourism and civil aviation. He was the Foreign Minis ...

, was reduced to a single seat and Lovell failed to be elected.

Electoral system

The 17 elected members of the House of Representatives were elected in single-member constituencies by

first-past-the-post voting In a first-past-the-post electoral system (FPTP or FPP), formally called single-member plurality voting (SMP) when used in single-member districts or informally choose-one voting in contrast to ranked voting, or score voting, voters cast thei ...

; 16 of the seats were allocated for the island of Antigua and one for the island of Barbuda. Barbudan electors were required to travel to Antigua to vote as a result of the aftermath of

hurricane Irma Hurricane Irma was an extremely powerful Cape Verde hurricane that caused widespread destruction across its path in September 2017. Irma was the first Category 5 hurricane to strike the Leeward Islands on record, followed by Maria two ...

Campaign

A total of 53 candidates contested the elections, representing seven parties. The Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party nominated a full slate of 17 candidates. The United Progressive Party nominated candidates only on the island of Antugua due to an electoral pact with the Barbuda People's Movement which stood only on the island of Barbuda. Together they fielded a candidate in every seat. The Democratic National Alliance (13) were the only other party to contest more than half the seats. The Antigua Barbuda True Labour Party and Go Green for Life both had two candidates, while the Barbuda People's Movement (affiliated to the United Progressive Party) and Missing Link VOP had a single candidate. A single independent candidate, Attorney-at-law Ralph Francis, contested the seat of Barbuda. Prime Minister Gaston Browne dissolved parliament fifteen months early. The main issues were the re-building and response to the 2017 Hurricane season, the Barbudan communal land ownership law, tourism resorts notably the

Sandals Resorts Sandals Resorts is a Jamaican operator of all-inclusive resorts for couples in the Caribbean. It is a part of Sandals Resorts International (SRI), the parent company of Sandals Resorts, Beaches Resorts, Fowl Cay Resort, and several private vill ...

, and a bribery scandal involving Browne.

Results

By constituency

References

{{Antigua and Barbuda elections Elections in Antigua and Barbuda Antigua 2018 in Antigua and Barbuda March 2018 events in North America