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Don Anderson, head of Market Research Services
By Nakinskie Robinson
Noted pollster and head of Market Research Services, Don Anderson, is anticipating an increase in the voter turnout for the upcoming local government election.
Previous polls, particularly those within the last year, have indicated that the public have little interest in voting in the February 26 election.
But Mr. Anderson says despite a pattern of low voter turnout in the parish council election and increased voter apathy, the national emphasis being placed on this election is expected to translate into a higher number of people casting their ballot.
"There's a fair degree of interest...and the data does support it, that there's likely to be a turnout in the region of about 36 per cent, 37 per cent for this election, which would be six percentage points more than it was in 2016," he noted.
While a 30 to 40 per cent voter turnout could be considered high for a local government election in recent years, Mr. Anderson said a voter turnout of below 40 per cent in any election is still troubling for a democracy, as it means neither of the main political parties would have received more than about 27 per cent of the popular vote.
If at least 36 per cent turnout is achieved in the local poll, it would rival the 2007 numbers, where 37.92 per cent of registered voters participated.
The pollster believes if the government does well in the local government election, the country should expect a general election to be called soon.
He was speaking Monday on the Morning Agenda on Power 106 FM.
His comment follows the release of results from the latest RJRGLEANER Communications Group-commissioned poll which canvassed responses from registered voters about the performances of municipal corporations over the last seven years.
Four out of 10 Jamaicans across the 14 parishes said the performance of their municipal corporation was poor or very poor, while another 40 per cent said their performance was average.
Only 20 per cent gave a positive rating.
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