HAMILTON, Bermuda, CMC – The two major political parties in Bermuda are struggling to win over voters ahead of the next general election, constitutionally due by 2025, according to an opinion poll published on Monday.
The Royal Gazette newspaper said a poll conducted by independent pollster Narrative Research Bermuda found that the ruling Progressive Labour Party (PLP) and main opposition One Bermuda Alliance (OBA) were tied when respondents were asked whom they would vote for if an election were to be held tomorrow.
According to the survey of 400 people, both parties received 26 percent support, with 28 percent indicating that they were still undecided. A further 10 percent said that they had no intention to vote.
The poll, conducted between August 31 to September 13, questioned 400 Bermuda residents by phone. It has a statistical margin of error of within minus or plus 4.9 percentage points.
In the last general election, the PLP received 62 percent of the votes cast, winning 30 of the 36 seats in the House of Assembly.
The OBA said the statistics showed that the government had run out of steam.
“A mere 26 percent vote of confidence for a ruling government sends an alarming and deafening message that our electorate is, quite frankly, fed up with the ineffective manner in which our country is being managed,” said OBA chairman Aguinaldo Medeiros
For a government that’s been in power for more than six years and, more specifically, held a 30-6 majority in Parliament for the past three, the results do not bode well for the confidence once bestowed upon it or its leadership,” Medeiros added.
But a spokeswoman for the PLP dismissed the poll as inaccurate, saying that polls had historically underestimated support for the party.
“Three days before the 2017 General Election, The Royal Gazette published a poll showing the OBA had an 11-point lead over the PLP. The actual results were an 18-point PLP victory.
“The PLP remains confident that our government is delivering on the promises made in our 2017 and 2020 platforms to create a fairer and better Bermuda, and through our legislative agenda, we are doing just that.
“We understand it won’t be easy, and we know that there may be apprehension regarding different initiatives, but in the end, voters will judge our government on the entire body of work since the last election.
“The PLP will continue to tell its story on the doorsteps, and our MPs will continue to demonstrate how the policies we’ve changed since coming to office have helped working Bermudians,” the spokesperson told the newspaper.
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