| Buchanan officially awarded seat |
| LINCOLN WARD, Observer St Elizabeth correspondent Wednesday, November 06, 2002 |
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| Buchanan |
PEOPLE'S National Party (PNP) candidate, Donald Buchanan, has been declared the winner of the magisterial recount, to decide the outcome of the South West St Elizabeth constituency, in the October 16 general elections.
In the recount, which ended at the Black River Resident Magistrate's Court on Monday last, Buchanan, the incumbent, triumphed by a margin of 105 votes over Derrick Sangster, the candidate for the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP). Sangster is the former parliamentary representative for the area.
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| Sangster |
Buchanan received 7,686 votes to 7,581 for Sangster.
In the official count, following the polls in October, Buchanan was declared the victor with 7,683 votes, to Sangster's 7,573.
This, however, did not go down well with the JLP who asked for a magisterial recount.
The recount, which was presided over by Resident Magistrate Marlene Malahoo-Forte, lasted for three days.
At the end, RM Malahoo - Forte ruled that Buchanan should receive another three votes, with Sangster getting an additional eight. Thirty-seven votes were rejected by her. She congratulated the winning representative and awarded costs to the tune of $17,710 to the respondent. She also commended the attorneys on both sides, for displaying "the highest level of professionalism and camaraderie,"
Sangster accepted the decision and expressed satisfaction with the procedure. Buchanan, on the other hand, opined that the win was an expression of faith in, and continued support for the leadership style of PNP president and prime minister, PJ Patterson.
Appearing for Buchanan were attorneys Walter Scott, Keste Miller and Karen Stanley, while Sangster was represented by Brian Wallace and O'Neil Brown.