PROVIDENCIALES, Turks and Caicos Islands (CMC) — The main opposition Progressive National Party (PNP) secured a landslide victory when the citizens of this British Overseas territory went to the polls in a general election on Friday.

Led by businessman Charles Washington Misick the PNP obtained a landslide 14 to 1 victory over the incumbent People’s Democratic Movement (PDM).

According to the territory’s supervisor of elections, Dudley Lewis, the opposition party won nine of the 10 electoral district seats and all five of the At Large seats.

 Misick, who is 70, is a former chief minister and the brother of former premier Michael Misick.

The PDM in a major defeat, saw their leader, Sharlene Cartwright-Robinson, who was elected the country’s first female premier in 2016, losing her seat. 

The only successful PDM candidate was former health minister Edwin Astwood who won the Grand Turk South. 

Meanwhile, the Caribbean Community (Caricom) in a statement on Saturday said that the Caricom Elections Observation Mission (CEOM) that monitored the polls, said that the process was free and fair “and the people of the Turks and Caicos Islands must be commended for this.”