Duncan siblings fizzle in second shot at political stardom

In 2016 when not one, but two members of the Duncan family hopped on to the People’s National Party (PNP) ticket, there was heavy speculation about their chances of ending up in the House of Representatives, given their antecedent.

They both lost, and lost big.

But the pair of sisters, again backed by their father, political strategist Dr D.K. Duncan, were back for round two in Thursday’s poll with high expectations of better fortunes.

Imani Duncan-Price was on the ballot for the PNP in Central Kingston, up against Donovan Williams of the JLP, while her older sister, Patricia Duncan Sutherland, has stuck with Clarendon South Eastern, where she faced off against Pearnel Charles Jr.

But again, they were defeated in an election that has turned out to be a landslide for the JLP.

Duncan-Price polled 4,147 votes to the JLP’s Williams’ 4,623 in Kingston Central, while Duncan Sutherland’s 7,257 votes were not enough to upstage Charles Jr, who got 10,219.

Duncan-Price’s history of working with her politician father while he was the member of parliament for Hanover Eastern was her training ground for representational politics.

Five months after giving birth to son Sailor in 2016, she had to hit the campaign trail for what turned out to be a failed bid to represent the people of St Andrew East Rural.

Though given a relatively short time to campaign after sitting MP Damion Crawford left the position vacant following a row with party delegates, Duncan-Price said she could not have turned down the request of the then PNP president and prime minister, Portia Simpson Miller, to represent the party.

“When the party president makes that request, you don’t really say no. Not if you understand the importance of organisation, which I do, and I value what the PNP has to offer this country,” she told The Gleaner in an interview prior to Thursday’s poll.

The JLP won the seat. Duncan-Price was handed her first political beating by Juliet Holness, the wife of Prime Minister Andrew Holness.

Duncan-Price said that she knew the stakes were high. She walked away gracefully in defeat and took with her several lessons.

“I know that there is no way any political party could have a president, and the man wife was running, that you would not put your entire kitchen sink and cupboard in the election, but you still go forward. You don’t step back, and [you] give it your best shot,” she told our news team from her constituency office in Kingston.

But having moved to friendlier PNP territory, Duncan-Price told The Gleaner that she was wiser, more mature, and ready to advance the people of Kingston Central.

With last night’s defeat, it will be another four years before she gets the opportunity.

The political aspirant, who, along with sister Patricia, once worked with family-connected financial firm JMMB Group, says she pays keen attention to numbers and had taken note of the thousands of new voters added to the 2016 voters’ list, as well as those who did not vote for Ronald Thwaites, the PNP candidate who won the seat that year.

The PNP secured the seat then with a margin of 1,222 votes.

“Numbers matter, and every vote counts,” she said, explaining that her campaign sought to re-engage PNP supporters who did not vote in 2016. That bloc, she felt, included a number of enthusiastic supporters willing to back her.

“I have met with new voters, and they are excited,” Duncan-Price had said prior to the elections.

Still, not enough of them showed up to cast their ballots for her. She lost to Williams by a margin of 476 votes.

Over in Clarendon South Eastern, D.K. Duncan had been beating the pavement to reverse fortunes for Duncan Sutherland, but while the political candidate said she had been taking nothing for granted and had been campaigning hard on the ground, it was not enough to give her a win.

As Duncan Sutherland herself noted, she did not flee the constituency after the first loss. It’s left to be seen what comes next after her second defeat.

romario.scott@gleanerjm.com