By Prior Beharry
FIRST the Arima Northeast seat was declared a tie when the polls closed for Local Government Elections on August 14 with 623 votes each for the People’s National Movement (PNM) and United National Congress (UNC) candidates.
Then after a recount last Thursday, the UNC candidate Jairzinho Domingo Gustav Rigsby was said to have won by one vote by the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC). He had received one more vote than his PNM opponent with 624 votes.
Now the EBC stated that the PNM candidate Kim Magdalene Garcia received two additional votes and is declared the winner of the seat with 625.
In a release on Thursday, the EBC stated, “At the end of the check of the final result of the poll in the electoral district of Arima Northeast, Kim Magdalene Garcia, the People’s National Movement’s candidate, received two additional votes.
“This result overturns the outcome of the recount, which was conducted during the period August 16 th -17 th , 2023 and saw the United National Congress’ candidate Jairzinho Domingo Gustav Rigsby being declared the winner.
“This check was conducted by the Assistant Chief Election Officer, Pamela Ogiste, on Thursday 24 th August, 2023 in accordance with Election Rule 106(1). These are the results:
ARIMA NORTHEAST:
People’s National Movement 625
Progressive Empowerment Party 81
United National Congress 624
