Last Updated on August 8, 2019, 2:18 PM AST by Anthony Morris
A recent poll has found that the people in St Kitts do not like Dr the Hon Timothy Harris and he would be a one-term prime minister, according to veteran regional pollster, Bill Johnson, who is based in Jamaica.
“People basically don’t like the prime minister, other than district 7 (St Christopher 7, currently held by Prime Minister Harris),” said Johnson in an exclusive interview with Freedom 106.5 FM, Juni Liburd in Basseterre, the St Kitts capital.
Johnson said he has been conducting polling for the St Kitts-Nevis Labour Party (SKNLP) for the past three years and the recent poll was the fifth in several of the constituencies that he has been doing since the February 16, 2015 general elections.
“Harris’ numbers were poor two to three years ago and they are still bad. By and large his overall numbers have improved slightly, but not much. Meanwhile Douglas’ numbers were always significantly higher with the exception of seven (St Christopher 7) where he is still very well received. In 7 Douglas numbers are high for the past three years, although they have receded a little bit in some constituencies,” said Johnson, who polled for the three-party Team Unity coalition leading up to the 2015 general. He polled for the Labour Party up to the 2010 general elections.
“Basically, It is like people are suffering buyers’ remorse. They thought it was time for a change and they got their change and now they are not happy with the change they recently gotten,” said Johnson.
“Obviously, unless something change drastically, Prime Minister Harris will be a one-term prime minister,” said Johnson who conducted the poll in six out of the eight constituencies on St Kitts.
48% of the people feel that Dr Douglas would do a better job running the country whilst only 29% think Dr. Timothy Harris is up to the job.
In addition, 48% said they wished Douglas was still Prime Minister compared to 35% who said they were content that Harris is PM.
49% of those surveyed have a unfavorable opinion of Dr Harris but only 36 % are in favor of him.
However, 63% have given Dr Douglas, a favorable rating while only 27% an unfavorable one.
On the question of performance, 38% rated the Prime Minister as doing a good job compared to 71% who said that Dr. Denzil Douglas’ performance during his tenure in office was superior.
By a significant margin, on average across six constituencies respondents registered more like (71%) than dislike (42%) for the former Prime Minister Douglas. In contrast, the average dislike (54%) is significantly more for Harris than like (38%).
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
