Chester Francis-Jackson, Contributor

Hylton (left) andShaw (right)

And so, my dears, with tomorrow being the political D-Day, the heat is on and then some, and my dears, how!

Well, the buzz from the JLP is that they are indeed so confident of victory at the polls, that they have already planned victory cocktails of sorts, for Tuesday evening. Plans are also afoot for a swearing in ceremony for its party leader on Thursday morning at King's House. And, my dears, it does not stop there. The buzz is that the wife of the party leader, Mrs. Lorna Golding, has her swearing in dress ready and waiting and has been issuing invites to the expected swearing in ball, to follow later that evening. No word yet as to which designer is favoured by the would-be first lady, but the story is that the ensemble will be a stateside import.

And precious angels, the swearing in frock is not the only thing expected from stateside, as indeed, the buzz is there are a number of charters on standby from Florida, as the NQW's - Not Quite White - set, who have been living in some kind of self-imposed social exile in Florida and funding the JLP electoral campaign with the almighty greenback, are all set to descend on the nation's capital, in jubilant triumph, should the JLP emerge the political victors.

Meanwhile, in the PNP, those committed to Portia Simpson Miller's tenure are hoping to seek out a two-to-five-seat victory at the polls. The celebratory plans are somewhat muted, but plans are afoot to have an election watch victory celebrations at the party's Old Hope Road headquarters, with the ballroom of one of the city's leading hotels tentatively booked for the expected victory celebrations.

Now, here is where it all gets fuzzy. As the story goes, there are those who are advocating a US$1,500 per ticket celebratory bash; but there's another camp saying the ticket prices should be nothing less than US$5,000. The only problem here is that the party leader wants to avoid the elitist option for a more all-inclusive affair. But that, my dears, is still some ways ahead, because as of right now, while Team Portia is ploughing on full speed ahead, elsewhere in the PNP, it seems everything is in a state of limbo.

Blame

Munroe (left) andMullings (right)

Now, in the eventuality of a PNP defeat, the post-mortem writers are all set to blame Colin Campbell and Phillip Paulwell for that defeat, based on the Trafigura affair, as well as the abysmal ad campaign leading up to the election. On the other hand, some are prepared to lay it squarely at the feet of Madam Portia Simpson Miller and the delay in going to the polls.

Now, if you listen to the JLP and its supporters and sympathisers, it is still Edward Seaga's fault, as it seems that after they unceremoniously booted him from active politics, they still expected him to come out and make nice with those who had wronged him, and his not having not done so is being bandied about as the reason for them not having a stronger showing!

One thing is sure: Should the JLP fail to capitalise on their own momentum, it can never be said that it was due to a lack of funding, as was the case in previous elections. This time around, the coffers have been swelling with donations. For the first time in many moons, the PNP's campaign has been hamstrung by the lack of funds, and not to mention a comprehensive team effort. And so, if they (the PNP) emerge the victors, it would be based solely on the strength of PortiaSimpson Miller's appeal.

As we go into tomorrow's general elections, these are the seats to watch. Of the JLP: Audley Shaw, Andrew Holness, James Robertson, Clive Mullings, Daryl Vaz, Gregory Mair, Bobby Montague.

Of the PNP: Maxine Henry-Wilson, Peter Bunting, Trevor Munroe, Anthony Hylton, Mikael Phillips, Norman Horne, and Ian Hayles.

These, my dears, should present a clear indication as to which way the political wind is blowing, or maybe not. The good thing being, we will soon see!

So then, more anon!