The start of an election campaign typically marks an intensified period of political activity. Once the 21-day campaign clock began to tick following the 2025 general election being announced, the period saw aggressive messaging, charged debates, and a descent into political mudslinging.
Saint Lucia’s political environment is shaped by two long-standing forces: a winner-take-all electoral system that turns every constituency into an all-or-nothing fight, and a deeply adversarial political culture inherited from Westminster. Saint Lucian political scientist Professor Cynthia Barrow-Giles explores this dynamic in her 2010 publication Democracy at Work: A Comparative Study of the Caribbean State, which examined how electoral systems and political culture shape democracy across the region. She argues that the combination produces “high-stakes elections, skewed parliaments, and a style of politics where personal attacks often overshadow policy”.
Despite her assessment being published almost 15 years ago, the points remain applicable to the 2025 campaign trail.
While many observers described the 2025 campaign as passing “smoothly”, the rhetoric told a different story. Words like “corruption”, “criminal”, and “unfit for office” echoed across platforms. At least two pro-UWP campaign songs referred to Prime Minister Philip J Pierre as “autistic” and “retarded”, language that sparked outrage across party lines and drew condemnation from groups including the Helen Association for Persons with Autism.
Other candidates faced their own targeted blows. UWP’s Vieux Fort North candidate Calixte Kakal Xavier spent a portion of his campaign responding to attacks directed not at him, but at his partner and son. Female candidates from both sides faced questions rooted not in their competence, but in their gender. And Allen Chastanet, for years, has faced criticism tied to his race – his “whiteness” used as a shorthand for foreignness.
In many cases, the loudest attacks did not come from candidates themselves, but from party surrogates, supporters and unofficial mouthpieces who operate outside the formal boundaries of party messaging. It’s a dynamic common across the region. As Barrow-Giles observes, political culture in small states often gives rise to “unregulated actors” who shape the tone of campaigning without accountability.
SLP: ‘Record over roro’
For much of the campaign, the Saint Lucia Labour Party emphasised what Philip J. Pierre repeatedly described as its “record”. Pierre insisted he would not participate in any “roro” and framed the election as a chance to “move forward together”. The party’s messaging stayed tightly aligned with governance, continuity and stability.
Several former UWP figures appeared on Labour platforms to condemn the UWP leadership, among them Andy Daniel, Edmund Estephane, and Felix Champagne Deterville. Their appearances gave the SLP the political advantage of criticism delivered from “inside the house”.
UWP: New faces, big crowds, stumbles
The UWP, for its part, ran a campaign fuelled by large rallies, a promise of renewal and sharp critiques of the Labour administration. Their messaging frequently centred on accusations of mismanagement, rising living costs and failures in healthcare and law enforcement. A major component of their pitch to voters was the introduction of 12 new faces, many of whom were political newcomers. Regional pollster Peter Wickham even described the rebuild as “impressive”, noting the scale of the overhaul following the party’s devastating 2021 defeat.
Their introduction added some challenges when several faced criticism for remarks made during the campaign. Their comments quickly drew public backlash, including Tommy Descartes’ comment that “gangsters are yellow” and Stephen Fevrier’s remarks about the auctioning of Julien Alfred’s shoe. In both cases, statements were later withdrawn or clarified by the candidates in question.
In her publication, Barrow-Giles notes that electoral competition in the Caribbean can often encourage “the politics of spectacle over substance”.
A quiet return to civility, mostly
As Prime Minister Pierre prepares to form his new Cabinet, the frequency of public exchanges has declined. Candidates across the aisle have thanked their teams, congratulated one another, and acknowledged the efforts of the electorate.
In the coming months as the new administration begins to take shape, attention is expected to shift toward governance and policy, as discussions about campaign rhetoric continue.
This is definitely not the dirtiest of the dirty side. The real dirty side is the lavish and unreal money spent during the campaign. What is the origin of those unaccounted funds? The political parties no way have those sums of money. We all know it. Let’s not delude ourselves.