The views expressed herein are solely those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of One News SVG.
Dear Editor,
One critical issue remains conspicuously absent from the 2025 election discourse in St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG): migration.
Citizens of developing nations, and indeed, many in developed countries, travel abroad for work or education. Some regard this as a dilemma; others perceive it as an opportunity for acquiring skills, knowledge, and experience in diverse environments.
In SVG, our people have ventured overseas for various purposes: training at resorts such as Sandals, enlistment in the British Armed Forces, scholarships abroad, participation in structured programmes like Canada’s farm workers scheme, and nursing roles on foreign shores. We are recognised globally as producers of quality nurses, many of whom sail the seas on cruise ships. Though exact figures elude me, it is certain that hundreds are involved, spanning from service members and students to farm workers and seafarers.
These do not even include the thousand of Vincentians in the diaspora who have emigrated to various countries. This article specifically focuses on those people who are away in structured scholarship or employment programmes.
So, what bearing does this have on the general election on 27 November?
The reality is that many who left to seek opportunities in the past five years, though perhaps endorsed by politicians from across the spectrum, cannot return home to cast their votes. They may have been given references, but votes cannot be counted when voters cannot return.
This is not to say that leaving voters ought to return merely because of political endorsements. Yet, with pollsters predicting a tightly contested election, every vote carries considerable weight, and those votes will assuredly be absent.
The question remains: which party suffers most from the absence of this electoral reserve? The answer is unclear. Their influence might manifest through remittances sent home, encouraging families to back certain parties, or students urging relatives to vote in a particular way. The diaspora’s indirect voice, like a distant echo, can sway decisions as surely as those present at home.
Elections are swayed by myriad factors, but perhaps none so quietly powerful as the silent majority beyond our shores. To understand fully the election’s outcome, we must study not only those who vote but those who, by their absence, reshape our political landscape.
By S. Francois
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One News SVG 