JLP continues process of selecting candidate in NW St Elizabeth

The governing Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) is continuing its efforts to select a candidate for the North West St Elizabeth constituency, this after six-term Member of Parliament (MP) for the seat, JC Hutchinson, indicated a week ago that he will not be seeking re-election there.

General Elections are due by September of this year, and Hutchinson joins other JLP veteran politicians like Audley Shaw, Karl Samuda and Mike Henry, who have signalled their intentions to step away from representational politics.

In the latest development in the North West St Elizabeth constituency, Hutchinson’s nominee for the seat, Andrew Morris, the Principal of Lacovia High School in the parish, won what was described by party officials as a "sounding" on Saturday.

Morris polled 79 votes to defeat Toni Bailey Cowan, who received just six votes.

The voting process was confirmed to reporters by JLP Deputy General Secretary, Dr Andrew Wheatley, who said Saturday's results will go to the party's operational council for discussions, after which a final decision will be made on who will represent the constituency.

JLP General Secretary, Dr Horace Chang, confirmed in interviews earlier this week that Hutchinson would end his longstanding career in representational politics by not offering himself as a candidate.

Chang said Hutchinson has been involved in local politics since the late 1970s, and was first elected MP for the constituency of North East St Elizabeth in 1980.

In 1997, Hutchinson won the election to represent the people of North West St Elizabeth, and has been undefeated there since then.

"He (Hutchinson) had indicated he would not be seeking to contest the next elections for personal reasons... He wanted to make the transition smooth, so he actually convened his entire party working team and indicated to them that he would not contest the next elections," Chang said then.

He said Hutchinson would remain as MP until the elections are called, and has committed to working with the party in the upcoming election campaign.

Over the years, Hutchinson has held various ministerial roles, including Minister of State for Agriculture during the period 2007 to 2011, and Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture, and Fisheries from 2016 to 2020.

He was reassigned to the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) in 2020 following an Integrity Commission (IC) investigation report, and currently serves as Minister of State in the Ministry of Science, Energy, Telecommunications and Transport.

Hutchinson faced calls from some of his constituents to resign in November of last year. They cited lack of representation by the veteran politician among the reasons for their calls.