Anguilla’s 2025 General Election saw the Anguilla Progressive Movement (APM) removed from office and replaced by the Anguilla United Front (AUF). The AUF won eight seats in the House of Assembly and the APM won three seats.
The APM leader, Dr. Ellis Lorenzo Webster, who retained his seat, was not gracious in defeat. On 3rd March 2025 at the APM Celebration and Family Fun Day he described the election as being stolen. He spoke about meeting with the Governor and that they would be talking about the Supervisor of Elections, as they wanted to make sure he gets his retirement and they would also be talking about the overseas voters, because they have to make sure the Constitution is followed.
Many persons interpreted Dr. Webster’s words to mean that he was contending that the AUF had stolen the General Election because of persons who had travelled from overseas to vote. Many persons found this contention hilarious because both the APM and the AUF, in the weeks leading up to the General Election, had actively courted overseas voters. That courtship extended to visits to neighbouring St. Maarten/St. Martin to meet with registered voters there. It is generally understood that both parties or their supporters facilitated the travel to Anguilla of persons who have been described as overseas or tourist voters.
Many felt it that the APM’s contention that the General Election was stolen could not be maintained since the APM, like the AUF, courted and facilitated overseas voters on the Voters Register. It appears that the APM and its supporters soon came to this realisation as this line of attack was quickly discontinued. Many persons were relieved, as they had no desire to see Anguilla’s Election cast into disrepute. Anguilla is known for having free and fair elections and persons had no desire to see Anguilla’s reputation tarnished.
The hope that any tarnishing had come to an end was short-lived when the APM’s leader, now Leader of the Opposition, Dr. Webster, wrote to the Governor on 7th March, 2025 suggesting that the Supervisor of Elections, Mr. Rodney Rey, had unlawfully tampered with the Voters List. Mr. Rey, by his own admission, had erroneously sought to register eligible persons to vote early, after the legislated deadline for their registration had passed. Upon recognising his error, he advised persons who had been erroneously registered to vote early, that they could not participate in early voting on 25th February and would have to vote on 26th February.
The tampering with the Voters List, as claimed by the APM Leader and Leader of the Opposition, is not apparent as to register to vote early persons had to already be registered to vote. No persons were registered to vote after voter registration had closed for the 2025 General Election. No registered voter was denied the right to vote, they simply were constrained to voting on 26th February.
Sadly, Anguilla’s 2025 General Election has been tarnished as the Governor, in response to Dr. Webster’s letter, issued a statement on 14th March, 2025 advising that in the interests of transparency she “will be commissioning an independent review of the circumstances surrounding applications for early voting in the 2025 election, the impact, if any, on the election and any lessons to be learned.”
What has become apparent, as the saga unfolds, is that character and reputation are important. Because Mr. Rey has cultivated a reputation as a man of integrity many persons have been vocal in their denouncements of any attacks on his integrity. While persons having been coming to his defence, we must now await the outcome of the independent review and hope that the outcome will remove the stain cast upon Anguilla’s 2025 General Election by the Leader of the Opposition’s claim of unlawful tampering with the Voters List by the Supervisor of Elections.
