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In a kickoff event held downtown earlier this week, independent congressional candidate Alan Stevenson Weston formally launched his campaign for the St. Paul’s congressional district, positioning himself as an outsider alternative to major party candidates with a two-pronged policy platform centered on National Parks reform and governmental transparency.

Weston, a former park ranger and small business owner with no prior elected office experience, told a crowd of roughly 120 supporters that decades of mismanagement and underfunding have left St. Paul’s three federal National Park sites in a state of disrepair, hurting both local ecological health and the region’s $450 million annual outdoor tourism economy. “Right now, special interest lobbying from development groups has blocked common-sense upgrades to trail systems, water quality monitoring, and habitat restoration that these public lands desperately need,” Weston argued during his speech. “As an independent, I don’t take corporate campaign cash, so I won’t be beholden to those interests when I get to Congress.”

His transparency agenda includes pledges to post all earmark requests, campaign donor lists, and member meeting schedules publicly on his official website within 72 hours, and to support sweeping lobbying reform that would extend the ban on former members of Congress lobbying current legislative bodies from one year to ten years. He also called out both major political parties for failing to address constituent priorities, saying that partisan gridlock in Washington has left critical local issues like park management unaddressed for far too long.

Local political analysts note that the St. Paul’s district has grown increasingly competitive in recent election cycles, with independent candidates capturing an average of 18 percent of the vote in the last three congressional races. Weston’s focus on local environmental issues and transparency is seen as an effort to appeal to moderate voters frustrated with both major parties ahead of the November general election. While major party candidates have not yet formally responded to Weston’s platform, early polling from a local nonpartisan research group shows that 62 percent of district voters rank governmental transparency and public land protection as top-tier issues in the 2024 election.

As the small Caribbean twin-island nation of Antigua and Barbuda prepares for its hotly contested April 30 general election, incumbent leader of the Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party Gaston Browne has launched a pre-election push centered on framing his administration as a steady, proven steward, while cautioning voters against the dangers of handing power to untested opposition leadership.

Speaking to hundreds of gathered party delegates at the ruling party’s national convention held at its headquarters, Browne positioned the upcoming ballot as a far more than routine democratic exercise: for a small developing state deeply vulnerable to shifting global currents, he argued, every leadership decision carries outsized consequences. Against a backdrop of persistent global economic volatility, soaring inflation worldwide, and escalating geopolitical tensions that threaten small open economies like Antigua and Barbuda, Browne stressed that the nation cannot afford to gamble on its future.

“In such a world, the future cannot be gambled. It cannot be handed over to inexperience,” Browne told the crowd, pushing back against opposition calls for change by highlighting his administration’s tangible policy wins over its term in office. He pointed to the country’s robust post-COVID-19 economic recovery, consistent private-sector job creation, and growing household incomes as evidence that deliberate, experienced governance has delivered real results for residents.

“These are not slogans. These are facts,” Browne emphasized, drawing a sharp contrast between his government’s track record and the uncertainty he claimed would accompany a transition to opposition leadership. The incumbent leader also outlined a continued vision for national development, highlighting ongoing and planned infrastructure investments that will outlast the upcoming election cycle, including upgrades to overburdened road networks, improved drinking water systems, and expanded access to core public services.

“Our choices must be careful. Our leadership must be steady. Our direction must be clear,” Browne said, noting that preserving national economic and social stability is the single most critical factor to protect and expand the gains the country has made in recent years. He called on all party members and supporters to remain unified and actively mobilize ahead of voting day, warning that the election will determine whether Antigua and Barbuda continues along its current path of progress or faces disruptive policy shifts that put its growth at risk.

While Browne stopped short of naming specific opposition leaders or parties by name, his remarks made clear his core critique: given the country’s small size and inherent exposure to external economic and geopolitical shocks, even minor policy missteps from inexperienced leadership could cause severe, long-lasting damage.

Beyond Browne’s keynote address, the convention served as a final pre-election organizing event for the ruling party. Delegates formally ratified the full slate of the Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party’s candidates for the election, and party officials used the gathering to remind supporters to update and prepare their voter identification cards ahead of polling day.

The April 30 general election is widely expected to be a tight, closely watched contest, with the incumbent Labour Party facing a coordinated challenge from a bloc of opposition groups working to unseat the ruling administration and take control of the country’s parliament.

The Antigua and Barbuda Public Service Association (ABPSA), a key advocacy body for the nation’s public sector workforce, has inaugurated a fully new executive leadership team following competitive elections held during its most recent annual general meeting.

Long-time association insider Janela Evanson, who previously held the senior post of general secretary within the ABPSA, will step into the top leadership role as president. She succeeds outgoing leader Joan Peters, who made the decision not to stand for re-election ahead of the vote.

In addition to Evanson’s elevation to the presidency, the election results brought several familiar and new faces to key leadership positions. Jannelle Wehner-Watts will retain her position as vice-president, returning to the role for another term. Karis George has been selected to fill Evanson’s former post as general secretary, while Sandra Benta-Richards will take over the critical treasury portfolio, managing the association’s finances and budget.

The broader 9-member executive committee also includes well-known figures from Antigua and Barbuda’s public service sector: Dr. Janelle O’Mard, Dr. Desiree Antonio, Orrin Steele, Jenique Joseph, and Garolyn Cornelius-Hector, who will all support core governance and strategic initiatives over the coming term.

Six shop stewards, tasked with direct grassroots representation for public sector workers across workplaces, were also elected to their posts. The cohort includes Onesha Elvin, Jeannette Mason, Sabrina Carlisle, Craig Martin, Delma Jules-St. Agnes, and Verlyn Charles, who won re-election to retain her seat. To complete the new ABPSA leadership structure, Kerry-Ann Mussington and Adrian Julian have been appointed as association trustees, responsible for fiduciary oversight.

The freshly elected leadership team will now take the reins of the organization for a one-year term. Over the next 12 months, the executive will manage all day-to-day ABPSA operations, advance the policy priorities of public sector employees, and act as the official collective voice for the association’s membership in discussions with government and institutional stakeholders.