Local Government Election Debates Engage Jamaican Voters

Voter turnout and Local Government elections. Courtesy of (c) The Gleaner Co. (Media) Ltd.

To help counter this concerning trend, the Jamaica Debates Commission (JDC), the global gold standard of debate organizations, staged two issue-driven debates for Local Government Elections called for February 26, 2024, by Prime Minister Andrew Holness. 

As JDC Vice Chairman Brian Schmidt stated, “The Commission’s mission is to organize neutral forums where candidates and party leaders can discuss the issues that matter to Jamaicans and help voters make informed decisions at the ballot box.”

A coalition of the Media Association of Jamaica and the Jamaica Chamber of Commerce drawing on deep experience since its founding in 2002, the JDC organized the debates on February 15 and 17-- with just 14 days lead-time. The forums featured a unique, dynamic team format with each of the two participating political parties, the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) and People’s National Party (PNP), naming three participants and included a gender-balanced team of moderators and journalist panelists who independently prepared and asked the party representatives questions. The public was also able to participate in real-time by submitting questions live via a specialized social media panelist. The debates were broadcast by 17 TV, radio, live-streaming and cable outlets, including the top three TV networks (TVJ, CVM and PBCJ). 

JLP and PNP debaters greet in a show of national unity.

In a national public opinion survey, registered voters underscored the importance of the debates in their decision-making. Nearly 55% said the debates helped clarify the position of the parties on critical issues; about 60% said the debates addressed issues of importance to them; some 36% underscored that the forums helped them determine which candidate to support and 16% changed who they intended to vote for. Approximately 67% of the respondents said Local Government debates should be mandatory, 21% were neutral and only 8% disagreed.

Debate Watch moderators -- Jamaican Association for Debating and Empowerment.

Participants reported the questions asked by the debate panelists were “clear and relevant.” Most felt more “empowered to engage in political discourse with their social peers and others” and want to see more moderated, non-partisan events where they could “learn more without politicizing issues.” Participants also want to be included in municipal decision-making that impacts their communities going forward and said they are better able to hold elected officials more accountable as a result of the discussions.

NDI and the US-based Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) provided on the ground technical support for the debates in Kingston, which received high marks from the CPD’s executive producer. NDI also participated in TV and radio interviews with JDC members to promote the debates and underscore the group’s expertise as demonstrated in the assistance it provides to debate groups in the Caribbean as well as Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East and North Africa. 

This program is made possible by the generous support of the American people through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under Award No. 72053220LA00001. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.