AMIDST much fanfare and the customary trappings of nomination day, candidates from both major political parties were nominated without incident yesterday at the Gordon Town Community Centre in the St Andrew East Rural constituency.

People’s National Party (PNP) candidate Imani Duncan-Price is hoping to retain the classic swing seat for the 77-year-old party, while the Jamaica Labour Party’s (JLP) Juliet Holness, wife of its leader Andrew Holness, is expecting to join her husband in Parliament when Jamaicans vote on February 25. The outgoing member of parliament is the PNP’s Damion Crawford.

At 10:46 am, hundreds of JLP supporters stormed the square in the pelting sun, some protruding from the rear and windows of overburdened vehicles, chanting ‘shower Labourites’. But it was from among the foot soldiers that Holness emerged, hands raised, chanting “JLP, JLP!”.

“I love my party and I believe Juliet Holness will win. She is better for the constituency,” JLP supporter Audrey Sutherland told the Jamaica Observer as she disembarked the back of a truck.

At minutes to 11:00 am Holness, accompanied by 10 nominators, made her way into the nomination centre, but the process was halted as three of the 10 who accompanied her were not on the list. The three were replaced and Holness was nominated. She paid her nomination fee with 30 $100 bills.

“…I have to tell East Rural big up, big up, big up!” Holness said following her nomination. “My chances are excellent. I walk on the ground and I have so many orange arm bands being given to me and persons saying ‘give me the prosperity band’,” she said while insisting that her party will be taking St Andrew Eastern, St Andrew West Rural and St Andrew East Rural.

“…It doesn’t matter who the incumbent is, the PNP won this seat by 259 votes. They did very little work in enumerating. They did little work in serving the people of East Rural St Andrew. The PNP has been a disappointment to the people of East Rural and they are ready for genuine true leadership…,” she added.

About an hour later, following a light downpour, the tiny square was transformed into a sea of orange, when an animated Duncan-Price, surrounded by Comrades, entered atop a trailer truck.

“Imani a go win by a landslide,” said Julia Hinds, a delegate from Harbour View.

As hundreds of flag-bearing Comrades crammed into the square where they were feted by music blaring from boom boxes affixed to the truck, Duncan-Price, with support from her father D K Duncan, sister Josina Duncan and husband Stephen Price, made her way into the nomination centre. Without delay, she was nominated and out quickly. She paid her fees with three $1,000 bills.

“I’m extremely confident of our victory for East Rural St Andrew,” Duncan-Price told journalists. “…We’re uniting the Comrades across every community and standing for what we know is continued economic transformation for Jamaica. We are not letting this one go; we are here for victory and we’re here for Jamaica.”