Kingston Mayor Andrew Swaby has formally announced the commencement of procedures to conduct long-overdue by-elections for the vacant Maxfield Park and Seivwright Gardens divisions within the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC). This development follows official communication from the Electoral Office of Jamaica received on March 9, 2026, reminding municipal authorities of their legal obligations under the Representation of the People Act.
The electoral vacancies emerged when incumbent councilors Dennis Gordon (People’s National Party) and Delroy Williams (Jamaica Labour Party) successfully transitioned to parliamentary positions following the 2025 General Election. While the by-elections were originally scheduled for mid-December 2025, Mayor Swaby made the conscious decision to postpone them due to the catastrophic impact of Hurricane Melissa, which struck Jamaica’s southwestern coast as a Category 5 storm on October 28, 2025.
In his address to the KSAMC monthly meeting, Swaby defended the delay as a necessary measure of sensitivity, stating that conducting political campaigns amidst national recovery efforts would have been inappropriate. Although Kingston and St Andrew experienced comparatively less direct impact, the mayor emphasized that the entire nation was focused on humanitarian assistance and reconstruction.
The Electoral Commission of Jamaica has concurrently notified mayors in Morant Bay and Savanna-la-Mar about similar electoral responsibilities, underscoring the legal requirement that by-elections must be convened within approximately three months of vacancies being officially recorded.
Mayor Swaby has already initiated correspondence with Elections Director Glasspole Brown and Local Government Minister Desmond McKenzie to establish a revised timeline for the electoral process. He assured council members that all necessary measures would be implemented to ensure smooth and efficient elections while maintaining focus on the municipality’s developmental priorities and the well-being of its residents.