The Nevis Reformation Party is a Nevis-based political party in Saint Kitts and Nevis. The party currently holds none of the eleven seats in the National Assembly. It is the main opposition party on Nevis, currently holding one of five seats in the Nevis Island Assembly. Since 2020, the NRP has been led by businesswoman and environmental consultant Janice Daniel-Hodge, the first woman to lead a political party in the country and daughter of former Premier of Nevis Simeon Daniel.
History The party was established on 1 August 1970.About the NRP Nevis Reform Party They first contested national elections in 1971 when they received 7.7% of the national votes and won a single seat.Nohlen, D (2005) Elections in the Americas: A data handbook, Volume I, pp576-578 In the 1975 elections the party's vote share rose to 16.2%, and NRP won both Nevisian seats available. After winning 16.0% of the vote in the 1980 elections they again won two seats and became part of the People's Action Movement-led coalition government. In 1984 their vote share fell to 10.1% but they increased their representation to three seats. They were reduced to two seats in 1989. The first leader of the party, Simeon Daniel, retired in 1992. The party won only one seat in 1993. The party retained their single seat in elections in 1995, 2000, 2004, 2010, and 2015. In 2010, NRP representative Patrice Nisbett joined the federal cabinet as Attorney General of Saint Kitts and Nevis. At the 2020 election, Nisbett lost his constituency to CCM's Alexis Jeffers and the NRP failed to win any other seats in Nevis, the first time in the party's history that they hadn't won any seats at a national election. The NRP were again left without representation in the National Assembly following the 2022 snap election in which CCM held onto their three seats.
Nevis Island Assembly
In 2006, the party won the Nevis Island Assembly elections, taking three of the five seats and ending the 14-year rule of the Concerned Citizens' Movement. In the 2011 elections, they remained in power after winning three seats again.
The party have been in opposition since losing the 2013 Nevis Island Assembly election. At the 2017 election they were reduced to just one seat. At the 2022 elections, they increased their vote by 4% and gained a seat, increasing their representation to 2 of 5 Assembly seats. However, in May 2023, Cleone Stapleton-Simmonds was formally expelled as an NRP member after disagreements with Janice Daniel-Hodge over who should become Leader of the Opposition, meaning the NRP are currently only represented by one member, Daniel-Hodge, in the Nevis Island Assembly.
Leadership Until 2020, the party has had four leaders: Simeon Daniel (1970–1992), Joseph Parry (1992–2018), Robelto Hector (2018–2020) and Janice Daniel-Hodge (since 2020).
Election results National Assembly Election Leader Votes % Nevis seats +/– Status 1971Simeon Daniel 1,127 7.7 (#3) 1 1975 1,987 16.2 (#3) 1 1980 2,356 16.0 (#3) 1984 1,830 10.1 (#3) 1 1989 1,948 10.9 (#3) 1 1993Joseph Parry 1,641 8.5 (#4) 1 1995 1,521 7.0 (#4) 2000 1,710 7.8 (#4) 2004 1,688 7.5 (#4) 2010 2,539 9.8 (#4) 2015 3,276 10.8 (#4) 2020Robelto Hector 2,232 8.0 (#5) 1 2022 Janice Daniel-Hodge 2,616 8.91 (#5)
Nevis Local Council Election year Party leader # ofvotes % ofvote # ofseats won +/– Govt? 1971 Simeon Daniel New 1975 Unopposed N/A 3 1979 2,493 86.2% (#1)
Nevis Island Assembly
Election year Party leader # ofvotes % ofvote # ofseats won +/– Govt? 1983 Simeon Daniel 1,614 89.4% (#1) New 1987 1 1992 2 1997 Joseph Parry 2001 1 2006 2,894 48.7% (#2) 2 2011 3,761 50.3% (#1) 2013 3,512 46.2% (#2) 1 2017 2,864 43.3% (#2) 1 2022 Janice Daniel-Hodge 3,543 47.2% (#2) 1
References
External links Official website Defunct website