Grenada to vote on November 5 as Mitchell sounds the conch shell
The date had leaked before the prime minister's rally, prompting an investigation, while NNP leader Emmalin Pierre challenges him to a debate.
ST GEORGE'S, Grenada. Grenada will hold its general election on November 5, Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell announced at a rally on Sunday, October 4, giving parties a month of intensified campaigning.
"You've heard the call. You've heard the shell. The decision now belongs to you. Therefore, general elections will be held on 5 November 2026," Mr Mitchell, an attorney, told the rally.
The announcement came as no surprise. The date had leaked over the weekend after authorities sent related information to the state printery and the governor's office for publication in the official gazette. Officials say they have launched an investigation into the leak.
Nomination day for parliamentary candidates is October 15.
Facing a resurgent opposition
Mr Mitchell's National Democratic Congress (NDC) holds nine of the 15 seats in the parliament of the tri-island state, which includes Carriacou and Petite Martinique. It faces a resurgent New National Party (NNP) led by Emmalin Pierre, the first woman to lead the party.
Ms Pierre, 51, says she wants to debate Mr Mitchell, 48, before polling day.
"I will never forget that the government is ultimately about people," she said. "I will be a prime minister who listens. Not only when there is an election. Not only when the cameras are present. And not only when people agree with me. But I won't just listen. It is time for action."
Hanging over the campaign is the prospect that Grenada's economic fortunes could change dramatically within a decade if it attracts major oil companies to explore for oil and gas, as neighbours Venezuela, Trinidad and Guyana have done.
Fourth regional poll
The vote will be the fourth general election in CARICOM this year. The Barbados Labour Party swept all 30 seats for a third consecutive time, Antigua and Barbuda's Labour Party retained power with 15 of 17 seats, and the Progressive Liberal Party in The Bahamas won 33 of 41 seats, breaking the one-term pattern for the first time in three decades.
