In the build-up to Wednesday’s general election, Dr Andrew Holness and his Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) insisted that performance over the past nine years would carry them over the line for a third term in Government.

In our view, they have every right to say, ‘I told you so’ following their narrow victory over an energised, reinvigorated People’s National Party (PNP).

Perhaps the JLP’s raft of promises seemed more realistic and affordable than that laid out by the PNP?

Even if that’s the case, we believe the Government’s success in achieving macro-economic stability — in the process halving Jamaica’s debt-to-GDP ratio over two terms — was significant in winning the confidence of those who bothered to vote.

Equally important, if not more so, in the eyes of many Jamaicans, was undoubtedly the dramatic reduction of murders by more than 40 per cent over the past year.

Dr Holness and his team, quite justifiably, have claimed that the material support provided to the police and wider security forces in recent years facilitated and added much to the capacity to combat criminals.

For those who missed it: In a disappointingly low voter turnout calculated at 39.5 per cent — surprising even in the context of extreme voter apathy of recent years — preliminary results showed the JLP winning by 34 seats to 29.

Final results are expected within days following painstaking recounts.

We take heart that even as he exulted on Wednesday night, Dr Holness found time to caution his party and incoming Government to “guard against arrogance… to listen to the people” and to “focus” on their concerns.

That’s a mantra to which the JLP must abide, especially in the context of a third term, which is uncharted territory for that party.

Dr Holness spoke of being “laser-focused” on “prosperity for all Jamaicans” and in ensuring the nation achieves its full potential.

“We have done so much as a country, but we could have done so much more…” he said.

None among us can disagree.

What of the PNP? We agree with that party’s president, Mr Mark Golding, in his gracious — though, as he admitted, difficult — concession speech that, despite defeat, that party came out of the election “alive and well” as a “powerful political organisation…”

From this distance it seems unlikely that after leading the PNP’s re-gelling following the devastating 49-14 loss of 2020, Mr Golding’s leadership will come into question for the immediate future.

Outside of party politics, Jamaicans had serious questions on Wednesday regarding electoral processes and management by the Electoral Office of Jamaica.

Anecdotal reports, far and wide, that people including the elderly and infirm had to stand in line for hours waiting to vote cannot be acceptable in modern Jamaica. In some cases, people were said to have left to go about their business never to return.

We wonder to what extent such frustration contributed to the low vote.

Whatever needs to be done should be done to identify root causes of Wednesday’s electoral challenges followed by corrective action.

That said, responsible Jamaicans need to drop the excuses and take their right to vote as a duty. Too many people blame politicians and the ‘system’ when things go wrong, yet, as individuals, they refuse to participate.