Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness elected to a third term as main opposition candidate concedes

KINGSTON, Jamaica (AP) — Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness secured a third term early Thursday following a tight race on an island shaken by corruption, inequity and economic concerns.

Preliminary results showed that Holness’ Jamaica Labor Party won at least 34 seats, while Mark Golding’s opposition People’s National Party secured at least 29 seats.

Golding conceded the election in a brief speech, saying he was disappointed in the outcome as he acknowledged the success of his opponent.

“This is not an easy speech to make,” he said.

Also participating in Wednesday’s general elections were the Jamaica Progressive Party, the United Independents’ Congress and nine independent candidates seeking a seat in various constituencies.

Official voter turnout was just 38.8%, only slightly higher than the turnout for the 2020 elections during the pandemic.

Just over 2 million registered voters are eligible to cast their ballots on the island of 2.8 million people.

A total of 63 seats are up for grabs in Jamaica’s House of Representatives. The leader of the party that wins a majority becomes the island’s next prime minister.

The new leader will then appoint 13 of 21 senators to Jamaica’s upper chamber of Parliament, and the opposition will choose eight others.

Under Holness, Jamaica has seen a 43% drop in killings so far this year, marking the most significant decline in decades. The improvement is largely credited to the current administration’s increase in firearm seizures and a stronger, coordinated security force presence across the Caribbean island.

The Jamaica Labor Party campaigned on this tangible success, positioning itself as the government that pulled the island back from the brink of widespread violence.

While crime statistics have improved, the shadow of Jamaica’s violent past still lingers. The measures taken by the current government, including implementing states of emergency in certain areas, have drawn both support and criticism.

The private sector and many Jamaicans have praised the effectiveness of such measures, with the number of killings dropping by as much as 70% in some regions, like the tourist parish of St. James.

However, human rights organizations have raised concerns about the use and potential abuse of such measures, highlighting alleged illegal detentions, as they call for balanced approaches to protect security and civil liberties.

The Jamaica Labor Party also emphasized fiscal responsibility, a low unemployment rate and the importance of continuity as it urged voters not to risk reversing the progress achieved so far.

On Sunday, Holness pledged that his party would double the current minimum wage of $100 per 40-hour workweek if reelected.

“We believe in growing the economy so that everyone gets a bigger slice. As the economy expands, we must ensure those at the bottom are rewarded fairly, while creating incentives for more Jamaicans, especially our youth, to join the labor force,” he said at a recent rally.

But his pledge drew criticism from groups representing various business sectors.

“Tourism accounts for approximately one-third of Jamaica’s gross domestic product and is one of the country’s largest employers,” the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association said.

“Any shifts in wage policy will therefore have wide-ranging implications for the sector, including employment levels, competitiveness and the affordability of the Jamaican tourism product.”

The People’s National Party, or PNP, had adopted a sharper, more critical tone before the election. It asserted that while progress has been made, many Jamaicans still feel the pinch of socioeconomic challenges, including poverty, inadequate infrastructure and lingering pockets of crime and corruption.

“There are a lot of frustrated people tired of the conditions in which they live,” Golding told reporters as he voted on Wednesday.

The party aimed to channel public discontent into a mandate for change, promising reforms, renewed social investments and a break from what it calls “complacency” in governance.

Key among the party’s raft of policy proposals to address the socioeconomic woes of Jamaicans is increasing the income tax threshold to $21,800, up from the current $11,200. The opposition party says it wants working-class Jamaicans to take home more money as a cushion against rising prices.

Despite Jamaica’s vibrant democratic tradition, recent years have seen a decline in poll participation.

On Aug. 29, members of Jamaica’s security forces and election day workers cast their ballots for this year’s election. The electoral office reported a 57% turnout.

Associated Press Dánica Coto in San Juan, Puerto Rico contributed.

People stand in line to vote at a polling station during general elections in Kingston, Jamaica, Wednesday, Sept. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Collin Reid)

Mark Jefferson Golding, opposition leader and president of the People's National Party who is running for Prime Minister, waves as he heads to a polling station during general elections in Kingston, Jamaica, Wednesday, Sept. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Collin Reid)

Mark Jefferson Golding, center, opposition leader and president of the People's National Party who is running for Prime Minister, shows his marked finger indicating he cast his ballot during general elections at a polling center in Kingston, Jamaica, Wednesday, Sept. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Collin Reid)

Mark Jefferson Golding, center, opposition leader and president of the People's National Party who is running for Prime Minister, walks to a polling station during general elections in Kingston, Jamaica, Wednesday, Sept. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Collin Reid)

FILE - Prime Minister of Jamaica Andrew Holness speaks following a meeting with Vice President Kamala Harris at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex, in Washington, Wednesday, March 30, 2022. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A state appeals court will decide whether to dismiss felony voter misconduct charges against an Alaska resident born in American Samoa, one of numerous cases that has put a spotlight on the complex citizenship status of people born in the U.S. territory.

The Alaska Court of Appeals heard arguments Thursday in the case against Tupe Smith, who was arrested after winning election to a regional school board in 2023. Smith has said she relied on erroneous information from local election officials in the community of Whittier when she identified herself as a U.S. citizen on voter registration forms.

American Samoa is the only U.S. territory where residents are not automatically granted citizenship by being born on American soil and instead are considered U.S. nationals. Paths to citizenship exist, such as naturalization, though that process can be expensive and cumbersome.

American Samoans can serve in the military, obtain U.S. passports and vote in elections in American Samoa, but they cannot hold public office in the U.S. or participate in most U.S. elections.

Smith's attorneys have asked the appeals court to reverse a lower court's decision that let stand the indictment brought against her. Smith's supporters say she made an innocent mistake that does not merit charges, but the state has argued that Smith falsely and deliberately claimed citizenship.

State prosecutors separately have brought charges against 10 other people from American Samoa in Whittier, including Smith’s husband, Michael Pese.

Thursday's arguments centered on the meaning of the word intentionally.

Smith “and others like her who get caught up in Alaska’s confusing election administration system and do not have any intent to mislead or deceive should not face felony voter misconduct charges,” one of her attorneys, Whitney Brown, told the court.

But Kayla Doyle, an assistant attorney general, said that as part of ensuring election integrity, it's important that oaths being relied upon are accurate.

About 25 people gathered on a snowy street outside the Anchorage courthouse before Thursday’s hearing to support Smith. Some carried signs that read, ”We support Samoans.”

State Sen. Forrest Dunbar, a Democrat who attended the rally, said the Alaska Department of Law has limited resources.

“We should be going after people who are genuine criminals, who are violent criminals, or at least have the intent to deceive,” he said.

In a court filing in 2024, one of Smith's previous attorneys said that when Smith answered questions from the Alaska state trooper who arrested her, she said she was aware that she could not vote in presidential elections but was “unaware of any other restrictions on her ability to vote."

Smith said she marks herself as a U.S. national on paperwork. But when there was no such option on voter registration forms, she was told by city representatives that it was appropriate to mark U.S. citizen, according to the filing.

Smith “exercised what she believed was her right to vote in a local election. She did so without any intent to mislead or deceive anyone,” her current attorneys said in a filing in September. “Her belief that U.S. nationals may vote in local elections, which was supported by advice from City of Whittier election officials, was simply mistaken.”

The state has said Smith falsely and deliberately claimed citizenship. Prosecutors pointed to the language on the voter application forms she filled out in 2020 and 2022, which explicitly said that if the applicant was not at least 18 years old and a U.S. citizen, “do not complete this form, as you are not eligible to vote.”

The counts Smith was indicted on “did not have anything to do with her belief in her ability to vote in certain elections; rather they concerned the straightforward question of whether or not Smith intentionally and falsely swore she was a United States citizen,” Doyle said in a court filing last year.

One of Smith's attorneys, Neil Weare, co-founder of the Washington-based Right to Democracy Project, has said the appeals court could dismiss the case or send it back to the lower court “to consider whether the state can meet the standard it has set forth for voter misconduct.” The state also could decide to file other charges if the case is dismissed, he said.

The court did not give a timeline for when it would issue a ruling.

Bohrer reported from Juneau, Alaska.

State Sen. Forrest Dunbar, left, stands with supporters of Tupe Smith gathered Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, outside the Boney Courthouse in Anchorage, Alaska, ahead of the Alaska Court of Appeals hearing a challenge to the voter misconduct case brought against American Samoa native Tupe Smith by the state. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

Supporters of Tupe Smith gather outside the Boney Courthouse in Anchorage, Alaska, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, ahead of the Alaska Court of Appeals hearing a challenge to the voter misconduct case brought against American Samoa native Tupe Smith by the state. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

Michael Pese and his wife, Tupe Smith, stand outside the Boney Courthouse in Anchorage, Alaska, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, ahead of the Alaska Court of Appeals hearing a challenge to the voter fraud case brought against her by the state. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

Michael Pese, left, his wife, Tupe Smith, and their son Maximus pose for a photo outside the Boney Courthouse in Anchorage, Alaska, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, ahead of the Alaska Court of Appeals hearing a challenge to the voter fraud case brought against her by the state. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

FILE - Tupe Smith poses for a photo outside the school in Whittier, Alaska, May 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen, File)