West Central St James still without PNP candidate By Keril Wright, Staff Reporter
WESTERN BUREAU: THE EXECUTIVE of the People's National Party (PNP) is yet to appoint a candidate for West Central St. James but supporters of Mayor Hugh Solomon have already declared him the next constituency candidate. Solomon emerged victorious in last Thursday's consultation election, with a 69 lead out of a total of 755 votes over his sole contender, former mayor Arthur Gilchrist. While the party has declared unequivocally that this election result is not the ultimate determinant of who will be chosen as the candidate to replace sitting Member of Parliament Arthur Nelson, Solomon's supporters see it as a victory. "The unofficial word is that Solomon is leading in the polls, and seeing that he has the support of all four councillors and the MP, it is very unlikely that the party would disregard this," Nelson told The Gleaner. Nelson has declared support of Solomon since he announced his intent not to seek re-election, last February. He pointed out that while the party had the last say they certainly couldn't disregard the overwhelming support for the reserved, non-verbal mayor. Considering the seemingly widespread support for Solomon, Gilchrist's supporters are openly confident of his chances to replace Nelson. "Keep in mind that Mr. Gilchrist got 46 per cent of the votes. O. Dave Allen, party activist and a strong supporter of Mr. Gilchrist told The Gleaner. Yet, Mr. Solomon enjoyed the majority delegate support on the election day. A significant majority of the delegates were decked out in memorabilia bearing his name and chanted victory slogans for the incumbent mayor. Jubilant delegates hurled shouts of "We want Sala," and "Sala all the way," as they crowded the various polling stations to cast their votes. Party vice-president Dr. Karl Blythe, who watched over the election proceedings, made it clear then that Thursday's election was not the final step in determining the candidate. "We are just at the consultative stage," Dr. Blythe said. He noted that the party would eventually chose the candidate based on the results of Thursday's polls, an upcoming poll of civic leaders in the constituency and on the recommendation of the party's campaign committee. "The party will be conducting another consultation with community leaders after which we will make a recommendation to the party's campaign committee. They will then pass on their findings to the Prime Minister who will ultimately make the decision," he told the Gleaner. He said the PNP had already concluded a poll that preceded Thursday's election but declined to comment on whose favour it was in. He noted however that the party would chose its candidate in time for a two-day National Executive Conference, scheduled for July 28 and 29.
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