Barbados General Election Results 1981

Updated:

Barbados General Election Results - 18 June 1981

General elections were held in Barbados on 18 June 1981. Elections were held for all seats in the House of Assembly using a first-past-the-post system; the number of seats having been increased by three to 27.

Electoral System

The 27 members of the House of Assembly were elected in single-member constituencies by first-past-the-post voting. There was no fixed election date in effect in Barbados at this time; hence, the choice of election date is the prerogative of the Prime Minister.

Background

In 1980, the Representation of the People (Amendment) Act, increased the maximum number of seats in the House of Assembly from 24 to 27, the first increase since 1843. The 1981 elections were the third since Barbados attained independence from Britain in 1966.

On 26 May 1981, Governor-General Sir Deighton Ward issued a proclamation dissolving Parliament and Writs appointing Wednesday, 3 June 1981 as Nomination Day and Thursday, 18 June 1981 as Election Day.

There were 167,029 registered electors, 76,854 males and 90,175 females.

Political Parties & Candidates

Major contestants for the 27 seats of the newly-enlarged House of Assembly were, as in the past, the ruling Barbados Labour Party (BLP), led by Prime Minister J.M.G.M. (Tom) Adams, and the Democratic Labour Party (DLP), headed by Errol Barrow, a former Prime Minister. Both were regarded as moderate parties. The BLP underlined its recent record in office, during which unemployment declined and per capita income rose, both to a considerable degree.

A total of 59 candidates from two political parties contested the election. The BLP and DLP both presented a full slate of 27 candiates. There were also five independent candidates.

Results

On polling day, Adams' BLP survived a strong challenge from former Barrow's DLP to win a second consecutive term of office as his party won the same number of seats (17) as before but had its parliamentary majority reduced because of the intervening expansion of the Assembly.

Voter Turnout

Voter turnout was 71.59%.

Post-election

On11 March 1985, Prime Minister Adams 'died suddenly at his official residence of a heart attack. Bernard St. John, the Deputy Prime Minister, was appointed Third Prime Minister of Barbados by Acting Governor-General Sir Arnot Cato.

ELECTORAL SYSTEM

System	First-past-the-post

Elected Members	27 single-member constituencies

VOTER TURNOUT

Total Valid Votes

118,501

Invalid Votes

1,069

Total Votes Cast

119,570

Registered Voters

167,029

Voter Turnout

71.59%

CRITICAL DATES

Dissolution of House	Tue, 26 May 1981

Nomination Day	Wed, 3 June 1981

Polling Day	Thu, 18 June 1981

First Meeting of Parliament	-

POLITICAL LEADERS

		J.M.G.M. Tom ADAMS Barbados Labour Party (BLP)

		Errol Walton BARROW Democratic Labour Party (DLP)

BY THE NUMBERS

BLP
	27 candidates
	17 seats
	61,883 votes (52.2%)

DLP
	27 candidates
	10 seats
	55,845 votes (47.1%)

IND

Independent Candidates

5 candidates

0 seats

773 votes
(0.7%)

SEATS

14 seats for a majority

BLP

17 seats (-)

10 seats (+3)

DLP

PARTY MANIFESTOS

BLP 1981 Manifesto

DLP 1981 Manifesto

SUMMARY RESULTS

Party	Code	Votes			Candidates	Seats
Party	Code	Total	% votes	Change	Candidates	Number	Change
Barbados Labour Party	BLP	61,883	52.22%	-0.47%	27	17	-

Democratic Labour Party	DLP	55,845	47.13%	+0.69%	27	10	+3

Independent Candidates	IND	773	0.65%	+0.36%	5	0	-
Total Valid Votes		118,501	100%	1%	59	27	+3

ELECTED MEMBERS OF THE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY

Constituency	Representative	Party
City of Bridgetown	MILLER, Billie Antoinette	Barbados Labour Party

St Michael South	SANDIFORD, Lloyd Erskine	Democratic Labour Party

St Michael East	BLACKMAN, Donald G.	Barbados Labour Party

St Michael South Central	HAYNES, Richard Christopher	Democratic Labour Party

St Michael Central	TRUSS, Aaron	Barbados Labour Party

St Michael South East	BRADSHAW, Delisle	Barbados Labour Party

St Michael North East	SISNETT, L. Leroy	Barbados Labour Party

St Michael North	GREAVES, Philip M.	Democratic Labour Party

St Michael North West	WEEKES, Lawson A.	Democratic Labour Party

St Michael West	TAITT, Branford M.	Democratic Labour Party

St Michael West Central	JOHNSON, Victor	Barbados Labour Party

Christ Church West	FORDE, Henry deBoulay	Barbados Labour Party

Christ Church West Central	KING, Maurice	Democratic Labour Party

Christ Church East Central	ST. JOHN, Harold Bernard	Barbados Labour Party

Christ Church East	CHELTENHAM, Richard	Barbados Labour Party

St Philip North	FRANKLIN, Warrick	Democratic Labour Party

St Philip South	BLACKMAN, Harold	Democratic Labour Party

St George North	ODLE, Jack	Barbados Labour Party

St George South	TULL, Louis Randall	Barbados Labour Party

St John	BARROW, Errol Walton	Democratic Labour Party

St Joseph	BOLDEN, Lindsay	Barbados Labour Party

St Thomas	ADAMS, J.M.G.M	Barbados Labour Party

St James North	CRAIG, Lionel Seymour	Barbados Labour Party

St James South	SIMMONS, Neville Keith	Democratic Labour Party

St Peter	HINDS, W. Burton	Barbados Labour Party

St Andrew	BRATHWAITE, Lloyd B.	Barbados Labour Party

St Lucy	BRATHWAITE, Roy	Barbados Labour Party

SUMMARY BY CONSTITUENCY, CANDIDATE, AND PARTY

Constituency	Candidate	Party	Votes	%Votes
City of Bridgetown	BILLIE A. MILLER	BLP	2,089	51.05%
City of Bridgetown	Lyle S. Carmichael	DLP	2,003	48.95%

St. Michael South	LLOYD E. SANDIFORD	DLP	2,191	52.87%
St. Michael South	S. Howell	BLP	1,953	47.13%

St. Michael East	DONALD BLACKMAN	BLP	2,345	55.85%
St. Michael East	Ramases Caddle	DBP	1,854	44.15%

St. Michael South Central	RICHARD C. HAYNES	DLP	2,317	55.72%
St. Michael South Central	June Clarke	BLP	1,841	44.28%

St. Michael Central	Aaron TRUSS	BLP	2,130	52.04%
	Cardinal L. Trotman	DLP	1,899	46.40%
	Charles Hackett	IND	64	1.56%

St. Michael South East	DeLISLE O. BRADSHAW	BLP	2,245	52.82%
St. Michael South East	Milton Pierce	DLP	2,005	47.18%

St. Michael North East	L. LEROY SISNETT	BLP	2,049	54.26%
St. Michael North East	Leroy L. Brathwaite	DLP	1,727	45.74%

St. Michael North	PHILLIP M. GREAVES	DLP	2,108	52.17%
St. Michael North	Ezra Alleyne	BLP	1,933	47.83%

St. Michael North West	LAWSON WEEKES	DLP	2,133	53.05%
	A. Reece	BLP	1,790	44.52%
	Joseph Nathaniel Pile	IND	98	2.44%

St. Michael West	BRANFORD M. TAITT	DLP	2,431	60.26%
St. Michael West	R. Walker	BLP	1,603	39.74%

St. Michael West Central	VICTOR JOHNSON	BLP	1,944	50.68%
St. Michael West Central	Wesley W. Hall	DLP	1,892	49.32%

Christ Church West	HENRY D. FORDE	BLP	3,814	70.94%
Christ Church West	John Daniel	DLP	1,562	29.06%

Christ Church West Central	MAURICE KING	DLP	2,798	52.17%
Christ Church West Central	Maurice Ward	BLP	2,565	47.83%

Christ Church East Central	HAROLD B. ST. JOHN	BLP	2,507	58.44%
Christ Church East Central	R. Thomas	DLP	1,783	41.56%

Christ Church East	RICHARD CHELTENHAM	BLP	2,636	51.15%
Christ Church East	C. Best	DLP	2,517	48.85%

St. Philip North	WARRICK O. FRANKLIN	DLP	2,276	51.62%
St. Philip North	David A.C. Simmons	BLP	2,133	48.38%

St. Philip South	HAROLD A. BLACKMAN	DLP	2,453	54.50%
St. Philip South	Hutson Linton	BLP	2,048	45.50%

St. George North	JACK ODLE	BLP	2,610	60.42%
St. George North	Eyrie Hoppin	DLP	1,710	39.58%

St. George South	LOUIS R. TULL	BLP	3,095	67.77%
St. George South	G. Holder	DLP	1,472	32.23%

St. John	ERROL W. BARROW	DLP	3,659	82.45%
	John Williams	BLP	705	15.89%
	Evans McG. Webster	IND	74	1.67%

St. Joseph	CHARLES L. BOLDEN	BLP	2,848	63.96%
St. Joseph	D. Smith	DLP	1,605	36.04%

St. Thomas	J.M.G.M. ADAMS	BLP	3,328	66.72%
St. Thomas	Neville Boxill	DLP	1,660	33.28%

St. James North	LIONEL S. CRAIG	BLP	2,527	63.33%
St. James North	Joseph Payne	DLP	1,463	36.67%

St. James South	NEVILLE K. SIMMONS	DLP	2,035	53.81%
St. James South	George W. Payne	BLP	1,747	46.19%

St. Peter	W.C. BURTON HINDS	BLP	2,637	51.85%
	Sybil Leacock	DLP	2,307	45.36%
	E. Green	IND	106	2.08%
	A. Wiggins	IND	36	0.71%

St. Andrew	LLOYD B. BRATHWAITE	BLP	2,257	53.11%
	Vernon Smith	DLP	1,598	37.60%
	A. Edwards	IND	395	9.29%

St. Lucy	ROY BRATHWAITE	BLP	2,504	51.16%
St. Lucy	Edward E. Greaves	DLP	2,390	48.84%

PAST ELECTIONS

GENERAL ELECTIONS

General Election Results 1951

General Election Results 1956

General Election Results 1961

General Election Results 1966

General Election Results 1971

General Election Results 1976

General Election Results 1981

General Election Results 1986

General Election Results 1991

General Election Results 1994

General Election Results 1999

General Election Results 2003

General Election Results 2008

General Election Results 2013

General Election Results 2018

BY-ELECTIONS

St. Lucy By-election 1954

St. Joseph By-election 1958

St. John By-election 1958

City of Bridgetown By-election 1969

St. Joseph By-election 1970

St. Philip North By-election 1976

City of Bridgetown By-election 1976

St. Michael South Central By-election 1978

St. Peter By-election 1984

St. Thomas By-election 1985

St. John By-election 1987

St. Michael North West By-election 1996

St. Thomas By-election 2001

St. John By-election 2011

POLITICAL PARTIES

Bajan Free Party

Barbados Integrity Movement

Barbados Labour Party

Democratic Labour Party

Kingdom Government of Barbados

People's Democratic Congress

Solutions Barbados

United Progressive Party

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SUMMARY BY CONSTITUENCY AND PARTY

Constituency	Registered	BLP	DLP	IND	Total Valid	Invalid Votes	Total Votes	Turnout
City of Bridgetown	6,222	2,089	2,003	-	4,092	44	4,136	66.47%

St Michael South	6,340	1,953	2,191	-	4,144	17	4,161	65.63%

St Michael East	5,788	2,345	1,854	-	4,199	47	4,246	73.36%

St Michael South Central	6,005	1,841	2,317	-	4,158	102	4,260	70.94%

St Michael Central	5,938	2,130	1,899	64	4,093	33	4,126	69.48%

St Michael South East	6,216	2,245	2,005	-	4,250	18	4,268	68.66%

St Michael North East	5,939	2,049	1,727	-	3,776	35	3,811	64.17%

St Michael North	5,966	1,933	2,108	-	4,041	26	4,067	68.17%

St Michael North West	5,915	1,790	2,133	98	4,021	40	4,061	68.66%

St Michael West	6,296	1,603	2,431	-	4,034	57	4,091	64.98%

St Michael West Central	5,682	1,944	1,892	-	3,836	67	3,903	68.69%

Christ Church West	7,652	3,814	1,562	-	5,376	25	5,401	70.58%

Christ Church West Central	7,514	2,565	2,798	-	5,363	29	5,392	71.76%

Christ Church East Central	6,004	2,507	1,783	-	4,290	21	4,311	71.80%

Christ Church East	6,997	2,636	2,517	-	5,153	53	5,206	74.40%

St Philip North	5,693	2,133	2,273	-	4,406	36	4,442	78.03%

St Philip South	5,978	2,048	2,453	-	4,501	29	4,530	75.78%

St George North	6,049	2,610	1,710	-	4,320	26	4,346	71.85%

St George South	6,173	3,095	1,472	-	4,567	39	4,606	74.62%

St John	6,216	705	3,659	74	4,438	53	4,491	72.25%

St Joseph	6,302	2,848	1,605	-	4,453	43	4,496	71.34%

St Thomas	6,658	3,328	1,660	-	4,988	48	5,036	75.64%

St James North	5,570	2,527	1,463	-	3,990	33	4,023	72.23%

St James South	5,290	1,747	2,035	-	3,782	25	3,807	71.97%

St Peter	6,796	2,637	2,307	142	5,086	35	5,121	75.35%

St Andrew	5,711	2,257	1,598	395	4,250	36	4,286	75.05%

St Lucy	6,119	2,504	2,390	-	4,894	52	4,946	80.83%
Total	167,029	61,883	55,845	773	118,501	1,069	119,570	71.59%

Key

Bajan Free Party	NDP = National Democratic Party	United Progressive Party
Barbados Integrity Movement	People's Democratic Congress	WPB = Workers Party of Barbados
Barbados Labour Party	PEP = People's Empowerment Party	Independent Candidate
Democratic Labour Party	PPA = People's Political Alliance	*incumbent
Kingdom Government of Barbados	Solutions Barbados	** Political Leader

Sources

Barbados Electoral and Boundaries Commission

Bajan Free Party (2018). Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/Bajan-Free-Party-BFP-HonAlex-MitchellEl-1767331239973521/

Barbados Integrity Movement (2018). Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/barbdaosintegritymovement/?ref=py_c

Barbados Labour Party. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.blp.org.bb/

Coalition of United Party. (2018) Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/alexmitchell.el/

Democratic Labour Party. (2018). Retrieved from http://dlpbarbados.org/site/

Solutions Barbados. (2018). Retrieved from https://solutionsbarbados.com/

United Progressive Party. (2018). Retrieved from https://uppbarbados.org/

Inter-Parliamentary Union. (2018). Barbados. Retrieved from http://archive.ipu.org/parline/reports/2025_E.htm

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