Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) candidate for Westmoreland Central George Wright is adamant that his foray into representational politics is rooted in service rather than personal ambition.

“I was born and raised right here in Westmoreland Central where the land, the people, and the spirit shaped my values,” Wright told the Jamaica Observer.

“I don’t see politics as a platform, I see it as service, relationship, and a responsibility to make everyday life better,” added Wright who entered representational politics in 2016, securing a win as councillor for the Petersfield Division.

In 2020 he defeated the People’s National Party’s (PNP) Dwayne Vaz, becoming only the second JLP candidate to win the Westmoreland Central seat long considered a PNP bastion.

The only other JLP representative to hold the seat was Karam Josephs, who triumphed over the PNP’s Pearl McKoy in 1980, when the JLP swept the polls.

Wright’s victory in 2020 came with a margin of 1,189 votes, as he polled 8,477, while Vaz, the then incumbent Member of Parliament (MP), managed 7,288 votes.

However, Wright’s political career took a nosedive in 2021 when he resigned from the JLP amid national outrage over domestic violence allegations.

He served most of his first term as an independent MP before being officially reinstated into the JLP in February.

Before entering politics, Wright built a career as a businessman, beginning with a bike rental company in Negril, then established an auto parts shop in Savanna-la-Mar, which later expanded into Montego Bay.

“I built my business from the ground up,” he explained.

“Those experiences taught me resilience, empathy, and the value of showing up every day to serve others. Public service isn’t just a job for me, it’s about being a son of this soil. When I walk through the community, I don’t just see constituents, I see neighbours, school friends, people I grew up with. That personal connection drives every choice I make,” added Wright.

He pointed to what he described as several accomplishments during his tenure, including improvements to roads and drains in communities such as Shrewsbury to Logwood, Shrewsbury Housing Scheme, Llandilo Phase 1, and Bullet Tree to Cornwall Mountain. He also highlighted upgrades to facilities like the Savanna-la-Mar Infirmary and the Frome Police Station.

According to Wright, he also provided 500 housing grants to constituents; offered funeral, welfare, and medical assistance to the indigent; expanded employment opportunities by linking youth to HEART/NSTA Trust for training to take up job opportunities in Jamaica and overseas; and stimulated the local economy by distributing more than 1,000 business grants

But despite the achievements which Wright pointed to, many residents in the constituency say much more needs to be done, particularly in relation to roads.

“We a bawl fi di road from Grange Hill to Savanna-la-Mar fi fix and all now,” said taxi driver Jeffery Cunningham, who plies the route daily.

“Mi nuh innah nutten wid none a di party dem. Just promises, promises, and nutten nah gwaan,” added Cunningham.

Since 2020, taxi operators and residents have staged several protests about the deplorable state of roads in the parish, with students and workers often stranded.

In August 2021, one protest erupted just weeks after reports that more than $65 million was allocated to fix the Gooden’s River to Glasgow road, along with millions more for other projects in the parish.

Once a hub for sugar cane production, Westmoreland has been hit hard by the massive decline of that industry.

Today, many residents depend on small-scale farming, while young people seek employment in the hotel industry or the business processing outsourcing (BPO) sector.

The lack of economic opportunities has contributed to voter apathy with many residents telling the Observer that they will not vote until tangible improvements in infrastructure and livelihoods are realised.

But even with the people who say they will not vote, Wright remains optimistic about securing a second term.

He has predicted victory with 11,000 votes, a number that would place him alongside the late Roger Clarke, the PNP stalwart who captured that number of votes in the 2011 General Election.

For Wright, the race in 2025 is not just about holding on to a seat, but about cementing his legacy as a politician who, through triumphs and turbulence, has sought to serve his people.

Westmoreland Central has long been considered a PNP bastion. The PNP won the first contested election in the constituency in 1959 and won six consecutive elections in the seat until its hold was broken in 1980.

By the next election it contested, 1989, the PNP regained the seat through Dr Enoch Kyrle Blythe. Vaz gained his first hold on the seat through a by-election in 2014 and retained it in the 2016 General Election.

George Wright (centre) has predicted that he will pull 11,000 votes to keep Westmoreland Central in the JLP’s win column. (Photo: Rosalee Wood Condell)