By TANEKA THOMPSON

Tribune News Editor

tmthompson@tribunemedia.net

THE upcoming general election is expected to be the closet poll since the vote in 1967, which ended in a tie, according to former Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) Cabinet minister George Smith.

Despite expecting a very tight race, Mr Smith predicted that the PLP will pull off a narrow win in what he feels will be an acrimonious election.

There was a tie in the 1967 general election with the PLP and the United Bahamian Party, the governing side, each winning 18 seats.

The remaining two seats went to Randol Fawkes, of the Labour Party, and Alvin Braynen, an Independent, who both later put their support behind the PLP, leading to Majority Rule.

“This is going to be the closest election since 1967 and whoever wins will win by very few seats,” Mr Smith, a former member of Parliament for Exuma, told The Tribune.

“My prediction is it’s going to be a hard-fought election and I pray to God that there is no violence, but a lot of insults will be hurled back and forth and, again, I pray for calm.

“I predict that this will be the closest election since 1967 and I am still mindful that the Progressive Liberal Party will at the end emerge victorious, but it will be a close election and many constituencies will be determined by small numbers.”

He said he is not concerned that close election margins may be challenged in Election Court due to concerns about voter fraud.

Last Monday, Parliamentary Commissioner Sherlyn Hall told the media that several people have attempted to gain two voter’s cards by registering twice at different locations.

Mr Hall told the media that the irregularities were picked up by the Parliamentary Registration Department’s computer database. He said a few people in New Providence, Grand Bahama and even some Family Islands have “misled” revising officers.

A man was arrested last Tuesday and charged in connection with alleged voter fraud the next day.

“I’m not too concerned about what they called voter fraud. People (may) attempt to do that but I believe the checks and balances in the Parliamentary Elections Act guarantees that no one can get away with that,” Mr Smith said when asked.

“The officials are there, every candidate will have their poll workers, the police are out. I expect the election process to be fair, I expect for there to be some nail biters in a number of constituencies, the end result will be that of those who are registered, we don’t have registration up to a point where we can say the potential electorate are all registered, of those who are registered there will be a handsome turnout.

“We will have outside monitors (from the international community) and there will be a number of nail biters and when the smoke clears in late evening on election day I am hopeful that my party will emerge as the governing party and performs to the level that we are capable of performing and live up to people’s expectations.”

Despite criticism leveled at Prime Minister Perry Christie over his performance this term, Mr Smith believes the nation’s leader has an advantage over his rival, Free National Movement Leader Dr Hubert Minnis.

“One of the things the PLP has going for it is the lack of great expectation of Minnis as an alternative in spite of all the criticism levelled at Mr Christie - he has the ability to rise to the occasion when it requires,” Mr Smith said.

“The problem is both parties in a number of constituencies failed to nominate candidates who have the intelligence and temperamental capacity to deal with many of the problems facing the country.

“When the people sit down and analyse the slate of candidates, the one thing that has always come to the fore is stability of the country, because that is paramount in the psyche of the Bahamian people, to make sure they vote for individuals that will keep the country stable.

And that is why I believe at the end of the day the PLP will win.”

In a statement released by the Office of the Prime Minister on Sunday night, Mr Christie revealed that Parliament will dissolve on April 11, setting the stage for the next election to take place.

Mr Christie did not announce an election date; however some observers speculate that it will be held in early May.