Jamaica's Prime Minister Holness Makes History and Secures 3rd Consecutive Term in Office
Kingston, Jamaica -Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness has become the Jamaica Labour Party's first political leader to win three consecutive terms in office as the JLP won September 3rd’s general elections, though with a significantly reduced margin than the previous election.
In the 2020 general election, the JLP won 49 out of the 63 seats at stake in Parliament, but according to the preliminary figures released by the Electoral Office of Jamaica, the party won 34 seats as against 29 for the main opposition People’s National Party (PNP) in the 2025 general election.
Holness won his St Andrew West Central seat after coming under threat from the PNP’s Paul Buchanan. Holness polled 7054 votes as against 4,953 for Buchanan, who during the campaign had vowed to win the seat Holness has held since 1997.
Holness, 53, told supporters that he was pleased they decided to stand behind the JLP, adding “today, Jamaica won this election.”
“The majority of the voters decided to choose Jamaica…this was not a victory by default,” he said, adding “it was not an easy victory, this was a fight, but we did not descend into the gutter to fight.”
He continued, “we did not tear down Jamaica, we ran a disciplined, focus and well organized campaign and we proved that we can run a decent campaign and win…this is how Jamaica wins,”, adding “our democracy, by this election, is proven to be intact.”
Holness’s victory came even as the Financial Investigations Division (FID) denounced what it described as a fabricated story circulating on social media which falsely claims that it has ruled that Prime Minister Holness must be charged for breaches of the Proceeds of Crime Act and other corruption-related offences.
But in a statement, the FID described the claims as “false, baseless, and malicious,” adding that the department “has issued no such ruling, announcement, or statement.”
It said as a law enforcement body within the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service, it operates strictly within the laws of Jamaica.
“All investigations are conducted in keeping with established protocols, and any public communication regarding charges or proceedings is made formally and through legitimate channels,” the FID said.
Holness told the celebrating supporters that “we went through the toughest battle in the Caribbean…and we will be here for a third term.”
“After all the attacks, I am still solid as a rock,” Holness said, stating that the JLP in its third term must guard against arrogance” and have a keener ear to listen to the people focusing on their needs.
“This government in our third term must be laser focus in ensuring that there must be prosperity for all Jamaicans,” he said, noting that the term prosperity means many things to all people, ranging from peace in the country to better education opportunities, housing and improved road networks. But he said that during the third term the party will have to undergo changes in a bid to attract new talent.
For his part, PNP leader Mark Golding, who easily defeated the JLP’s Carlton Allen to win the St Andrew Southern seat, the results were a bittersweet pill as Golding had improved significantly on the PNP’s 14 seats the party had won in the 2020 general election.
In conceding defeat, Golding said that he was pleased that the PNP had returned to the position of being a force in Jamaican politics.
“First of all, it is my duty as a believer of democracy to acknowledge the defeat and the results and congratulate our opponents for their victory tonight,” Golding said, adding “Jamaica’s democracy is important, and we must cherish it.”
He continued, “sometimes it brings big disappointments…but it is very important that democracy ahead of all of those feelings and I accept the results of the elections….”
The preliminary figures show that 39.3 percent of the more than two million eligible voters cast ballots on Wednesday, just over one percent more than when Jamaicans voted during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
