PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad (CMC) — The United States Government Tuesday welcomed the victory of Kamla Persad-Bissessar in Monday’s general election, describing her as a “strong leader, friend and US ally”.

US Secretary of State Marcos Rubio said that Persad-Bissessar, who led her United National Congress (UNC) coalition to an overwhelming victory “shares President Donald Trump’s priorities on secutity and immigration.

“We look forward to building a close partnership for the future of Trinidad and Tobago and the entire Caribbean,” Rubio added.

Meanwhile, both the Caribbean Community (Caricom) and the Commonwealth Observer groups have released separate statements regarding the general election that was contested by 161 candidates representing 17 political parties and three independent candidates.

In its statement, the 12 member Caricom Election Observation Mission (CEOM) said its “primary role was to observe preparations for the conduct of the parliamentary elections and to provide an independent, impartial, and honest assessment of the electoral process, taking account of all factors that may impinge on the overall credibility and transparency of the elections”.

It said based on the team’s observations, the initial assessment “is that the voters were able to cast their ballots without intimidation or fear, and that the results of the 28 April 2025 Parliamentary Elections reflect the will of the electorate of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago”.

The CEOM Chief of Mission Ian S Hughes said that a full report will be prepared for submission to Caricom Secretary Genera Dr Carla Barnett.

The Commonwealth Observer team, meanwhile, said that its final report with key recommendations will be submitted to the secretary general and shared with the Trinidad and Tobago Government and the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC), political parties as well as other key stakeholders and to the wider public.

But in its preliminary report, the group recommend that all political parties adhere to the Code of Political Conduct which does “not permit the use and abuse of state resources for political campaigns”.

The Commonwealth group commended the EBC “for providing clear and helpful signage in all polling stations to aid the flow and coherence of the voting process” and that the voters lists were prominently displayed at polling centres.

However, the group has urged the EBC to strengthen its engagement with all stakeholders, including civil society to improve the electoral process.

“We also urge the State to make adequate resources and support available to enable it to discharge its constitutional duty.

”The people of Trinidad and Tobago have once again demonstrated patience and commitment to democracy. We will provide recommendations on how the electoral processes might be further improved in our final report, which will be made public,” said the group.