Grenada voters to elect new leadership

By JACQUELINE CHARLES

jcharles@MiamiHerald.com

Tens of thousands of voters in Grenada are expected to head to the polls Tuesday, in what political observers are calling a high-stakes race between Prime Minister Keith Mitchell's ruling New National Party and the opposition National Democratic Congress.

The NDC, which is accusing Mitchell of mismanagement and corruption, is hoping to be the latest opposition party in the Caribbean to win office in the face of voter frustration with rising prices and feelings of the need for change. The NDC is led by Tillman Thomas.

Mitchell, who led Grenada's rebuilding efforts after it was devastated by Hurricane Ivan in 2004, is seeking to extend his 13 years in office by winning another five year-term.

Given the volatile climate, the Organization of American States has tripled the number of observers on the ground, OAS Assistant Secretary General Albert Ramdin told The Miami Herald last week during a Caribbean Community meeting in neighboring Antigua.

''We made an extra effort to get more persons in this observation mission because these elections are ... being characterized by high stakes,'' Ramdin said.

``There is an expectation from both the NNP and NDC ... that they will win the elections ... so in this charged climate I think it's good to have a solid presence of international observers.''

Ramdin said 13 nationalities are represented including non-Grenadian college students from the region. He said he expects that observers will be able to visit all 295 polling stations at least once, if not twice a day.