JACQUELINE Lewis is the new People’s National Party (PNP) caretaker-candidate for the Norman Gardens Division in the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation.

Lewis defeated her competitor Racquel Hall by snatching 151 of the 258 votes cast in the run-off held yesterday at the Kingston Eastern and Port Royal Constituency Office.

Of those who predicted her win, the closest call was from Keron Woods, communication and social media representative for Lewis who had predicted a 48-vote margin.

Lewis, a resident of Rockfort for 57 years, said yesterday’s victory was indescribable as the outgoing councillor, Angela Brown Burke — who was recently elected as the new standard-bearer for the PNP in the St Andrew South Western constituency following the retirement of former prime minister and party leader Portia Simpson Miller from representational politics earlier this year — had given her support to Hall.

Lewis also said, although she had served as chairman of the Norman Gardens Division and served as cluster manager, liaison officer, training officer, and planner within the division, “[she] did not know there was so much love for her”.

“It is overwhelming, but today I know that the people of the Norman Gardens Division are independent. People are here from overseas, people are here from Payne Land Division, many of my past students are also here, and I will ensure I give them my mandate,” she said.

Lewis will represent the PNP in a by-election for the local government seat, but her first intention is to clean up the group list within the division after the returning officer at yesterday’s polls expressed disappointment in the voter turnout.

Lewis made an appeal to delegates to come out and work on having an accurate group list going forward.

The returning officer, according to Lewis, said although only 258 voted, there were close to 400 delegates, and warned that if the discrepancies on the list were not addressed it would affect the division and the constituency in the long run. She was, however, pleased that there were no altercations during the voting process.

Lewis, who is now on pre-retirement leave after serving more than 20 years at the Rennock Lodge All-Age School in the division, intends to continue to help foster peace between the warring factions within the division.