Gaston Browne wins a fourth term in Antigua and Barbuda

Official results showed the Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party winning 15 of 17 seats in the House of Representatives. The party is led by prime minister Gaston Browne. He was sworn in for a fourth term. The opposition leaders Jamale Pringle and Trevor Walker each kept their own seats.

Antigua and Barbuda is a Caribbean country whose House of Representatives has 17 elected members. Fifteen seats is a large majority in a chamber that small. A fourth term means Browne has been elected prime minister again after three previous mandates. Being sworn in is the formal start of the new term.

Jamale Pringle leads the United Progressive Party. Trevor Walker leads the Barbuda People's Movement. Each retained the seat he already held, which accounts for the two seats the Labour Party did not win. The report does not give vote percentages, only seats.

Browne had been challenged in the election by Pringle's party. The seat count shows that challenge did not unseat the government. A 15 to 2 result leaves the opposition with a minimal presence in the house. Walker’s retention is specifically noted alongside Pringle's.

Small parliaments can change control if only a few constituencies flip. In this election they did not. The Labour Party's 15 seats are enough to govern alone. The swearing-in followed the official results of a vote held the day before the results were confirmed.

Gaston Browne begins a fourth term as prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda. His Labour Party holds 15 of 17 seats. Jamale Pringle and Trevor Walker remain in the House. The official results and the oath were reported on May 1.