RSM leader Louis Mussington acknowledges the crowd on stage outside Hôtel de la Collectivité last night after his convincing victory in the Territorial Council election. (Robert Luckock photo)
MARIGOT--Louis Mussington’s Rassemblement Saint-Martinois (RSM) won the Territorial Council election last night in front of jubilant crowds after scoring an emphatic victory against Team Gibbs, capturing 4,742 votes (49.11 per cent) to Team Gibbs’ 3,216 votes (33.31 per cent), a difference of 1,526 votes in RSM’s favour.
Third place went to Generation Hope (Jules Charville) with 1,698 votes (17.58 per cent). The Generation Hope alliance with Saint-Martin avec Vous (Jaques Hamlet) and L’Avenir Saint-Martin (Yawo Nyuiadzi) did not do as well as expected despite a well-organised campaign. The results are provisional and will be confirmed by the Préfecture on Monday.
The turnout of voters in the second round was considerably more than that of the first round. Some 9,923 votes were cast, a participation rate of 52.22 per cent compared to 8,791 in the first round (46.36 per cent.
Actual votes cast were 9,656 with 267 blank votes. The abstention rate was 47.78 per cent from a total 18,990 eligible voters.
While the electorate did not take to the alliance formed by Generation Hope, the opposite was true for RSM in joining forces with Valérie Damaseau’s Alternative party, considered a key to RSM’s victory. Damaseau had rejected offers from the other parties after the first round, when it became clear they were against RSM.
“For the first time entering the political fray, and obtaining 934 votes in the first round, I have to respect that,” commented RSM’s Bernadette Davis about Damaseau. “She’s young and energetic, and will be a perfect fit for our team.”
Louis Mussington and his team were greeted with applause and cheers when they emerged on to the stage, high-fiving a sea of hands, flags and smartphones. RSM won the first round with a very slim margin of 54 votes, but the writing was already on the wall.
“I want to say ‘Thank God’,” were Mussington’s first words. “I do believe there is a living God who has helped deliver this great victory tonight.” He went on to thank all the districts that voted for RSM, as well as acknowledging the performance of Team Gibbs and Generation Hope.
“We are political adversaries, not political enemies, let’s make that clear this evening, he said. “This victory is a celebration for St. Martin, a new day on the horizon. We must now come together as one family. There is no room anymore for division and petty quarrels. Let’s look at the big picture. I am very proud of this great moment you have been asking for. We have heard your cry. As leader of this great team, I am committed to steering a pathway to unity, togetherness and prosperity for all.”
Jules Charville admitted he was disappointed with Generation Hope’s result.
“There’s a certain percentage of the population that simply rejected the alliance we formed,” he reasoned. “Some people said they wanted an alliance two ways and not three ways. But you don’t know how people are going to react sometimes. The alliance we had with Mussington in 2017 worked and we got more votes, but not this time. It’s a gamble.”
When Daniel Gibbs came out with his team to declare the results, he was greeted with boos from the crowd, particularly when he said, “It’s a sad day for St. Martin.” Highlighting some highs and lows of his presidency, his remarks were emotional. But he thanked all the voters that voted for Team Gibbs and his own team.
The early estimation is that Team Gibbs will have six seats in the new Territorial Council and Generation Hope two seats.
