1946 Antiguan general election

1946 Antiguan general election
All 5 seats in the Legislative Council; 3 seats needed for a majority
Administrator before election; F. S. Harcourt;	Subsequent Administrator ; Leslie Stuart Greening;

General elections were held for the first time in Antigua and Barbuda on 26 July 1946.^[1] The elections were held under a limited franchise and only those who owned property were permitted to stand for election to the legislature. The Antigua Trades and Labour Union (ATLU) chose five of its members who satisfied the property criteria to stand as labour representatives. All were elected as the union-backed candidates received 82% of the vote.^[2]

One of the five was union leader and future Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda Vere Bird, who first entered the Antigua and Barbuda legislature through a by-election in 1945.

Results

The five union-backed candidates won their seats by large margins.^[1]


Party		Votes	%	Seats
	ATLU-affiliated candidates	7,737	81.53	5
	Other candidates	1,753	18.47	0
Total		9,490	100.00	5

Source: University of California^[2]

Aftermath

Following the elections, Bird was chosen by the Governor of Antigua to sit on the Executive Council of the colony.

References

^ ^a ^b Brian Dyde (2000) A History of Antigua: The Unsuspected Isle, Macmillan Caribbean, p237
^ ^a ^b The Origins and Development of Political Parties in the British West Indies, Volume 2, University of California, p580

[BD-1] Brian Dyde (2000) A History of Antigua: The Unsuspected Isle, Macmillan Caribbean, p237

[UC-2] The Origins and Development of Political Parties in the British West Indies, Volume 2, University of California, p580

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