Jamaica is located in the Caribbean Sea. Renowned for its beauty and its tropical climate, tourism is the heavy driver of the country's economy. An industry that's been devastated by COVID-19.
The island nation has recently been experiencing a surge in confirmed cases. And at the same time, voters were also tasked with going to the polls. The results clearly indicate that Jamaicans have confidence in the country's government.
Holness' party wins big
The center-right Jamaica Labour Party has scored a sweeping win in the 2020 Parliamentary election.
It scored more than triple the seats of its rival, the People's National Party.
The incumbent Prime Minister leads the Jamaica Labour Party. Not surprisingly, one of the central issues of the election was the state of the economy, which has been hit hard by the impact of the novel coronavirus. However, as indicated by the CBC, to this point, it's been surprisingly well-off in relative terms. Something that likely played a significant role in the Jamaica Labour Party's success.
Going into the election, the People's National Party was led by Peter Phillips. Among other things, Phillips is a former minister of finance and minister of national security. He appears to have won re-election to his seat in Parliament.
However, MSN notes that he would previously said he would retire from politics if his party lost the election.
The Jamaica Labour Party and the People's National Party were the only two parties contesting the 2020 election. They've been the dominant political parties in the country for many years.
Holness is in his second stint as prime minister
Andrew Holness has been in Parliament since 1997. He represents a constituency-based in Saint Andrew Parish in eastern Jamaica. In 2007, he became the minister of education under Prime Minister Bruce Golding.
Golding resigned as prime minister and leader of the Jamaica Labour Party in 2011.
Holness succeeded him in both roles. For a short time, he continued on serving as the minister of education. His first tenure as prime minister was brief overall. The Jamaica Labour Party came up short in the 2011 Parliamentary election. Portia Simpson-Miller became the prime minister for a second time soon thereafter.
Holness continued leading his party after the election defeat. He served as the leader of the opposition until 2016. That year, another Parliamentary election was held. In this case, Holness and his party emerged with a narrow victory. He returned to the role of prime minister.
Notably, a new MP was elected in the 2016 campaign. That being Juliet Holness, Andrew's wife, marking a rare occasion when a married couple both serve in a legislature together. High school sweethearts, they've been married since 1997. They have two children.
