The Village Beneath

Bermudian gardens were invaded over the Christmas period by a species once thought to have been banished to the outside world. Political stakeboards peered out from behind cedar trees at passing cars and mopeds. The general election was imminent, and pride of political expression seemed to have taken root on an island where voting loyalty once resembled the love that dare not speak it's name.

Bermudian elections were once disorganised or one-sided affairs. For 30 years the United Bermuda Party macheted their way through contests with the help of wealthy donors and overpaid political consultants. They held office between 1968 and 1998 and gradually became corrupt, self-serving and petty. Their last few years in office were spent debating the pros and cons of allowing McDonalds to open a branch on the Island (it is still banned).

The Progressive Labour Party's victory on December 18, 2007 (http://www.royalgazette.com/siftology.royalgazette/election.jsp?sectionId=193) was the result of an unprecedentedly organised and deliberate election campaign by a party that was once considered unelectable. There was a 2% swing towards the PLP, after 9 years in government. Finally, this seemed like an evenly balanced fight in terms of the resources and organisation of two contesting parties.

In the end though, the PLP won because it fought a more effective campaign. There was the correct balance of trumpting achievements and plans while pointing out weaknesses of opponents. There was a consistent, simple message throughout, emphasising ordinary people not abstract ideas. And there was a strong momentum of mobilisation using banners, flags, posters, stakeboards and caps and T-shirts. Election day found the approach to the capital city of Hamilton festooned with PLP green.

The PLP were better at getting their vote out and won on a markedly improved turnout. But the PLP victory emphasised the other distinctive feature of Bermudian politics: that race squeezes about debate over ideas or policy in Bermuda. PLP support is overwhelmingly black, UBP support is overwhelmingly white. Election fever exacerbated this racial division and Bermuda is an overtly divided country, whereas before its divsisions were more hidden.

Let's be clear: the PLP didn't cause these divisions. They're the result of hundreds of years of white supremacist rule. The PLP's time in office has simply made them more apparent. In the long run, this is a healthy thing for the country. But I also see the need for a modern, liberal, progressive party in Bermuda, which respects due process, human rights, affirmative action and the environment but whose stance and rhetoric makes everyone, black or white, feel welcome. There are many blacks and whites who feel the PLP's victory was a good thing for Bermudian democracy but who also fundamentally disagree with the PLP's way of doing things.

If nothing else, though, the last nine years have introduced into Bermudian gardens a new genus of plant: political pridus. Let's hope the Bermudian climate is favourable to it in years to come.