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(Bloomberg) — Trinidad and Tobago’s opposition swept to power in a landslide victory that marks a stunning comeback for Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, who had led the country between 2010 and 2015.
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While electoral authorities have yet to deliver final results, state television said Tuesday morning that Persad-Bissessar’s United National Congress had won 25 of 41 seats in the House of Representatives.
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Meanwhile, the ruling People’s National Movement of incumbent prime minister Stuart Young obtained 14 seats. The party’s leader, Keith Rowley, conceded defeat.
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In a victory speech, the 73-year-old Persad-Bissessar said her administration will reopen the Petrotrin oil refinery, which was shuttered in 2018 because it was no longer profitable. In February the PNM-led administration announced that Nigeria’s Oando Energy was selected for negotiations to reopen the refinery.
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The UNC has also promised to create 50,000 jobs, ensure senior citizens retain their pensions and tackle rising crime by granting gun permits.
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Persad-Bissessar, a lawyer by profession, is the only woman to have served as prime minister of the Caribbean nation. She ran against Young, who took over as prime minister in March when Rowley stepped down amid accelerating inflation, soaring crime rates and pressure from US President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
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“This will be UNC’s third time in charge but with stronger political capital than before,” Barclays analysts Nestor Rodriguez and Jason Keene wrote Tuesday in a note. “Dissatisfaction with the economy and security management ended up taking its toll on the PNM.”
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Energy Future
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Rowley’s PNM had campaigned on its successes in renegotiating natural gas contracts to bring in much needed public revenue, as well as increasing salaries and providing free health care. The party had also promised to ensure joint exploration and production of gas with neighboring Venezuela, even after the US revoked licenses for that project as part of its sanctions against the Nicolas Maduro administration.
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The UNC’s pledge to reduce corporate and property taxes will become increasingly difficult after the US decision to revoke a license allowing Trinidad and Tobago to conduct joint exploration and production in two of Venezuela’s gas fields, effectively pausing any plans to develop the Dragon and Manakin-Cocuina fields.
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While Persad-Bissessar’s economic platform highlights economic opportunities in the yachting industry, it is unlikely to compensate for the country’s energy industry deceleration, Rodriguez and Keene wrote.
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—With assistance from Fabiola Zerpa.
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(Updates with comment from Barclays, background on gas fields starting in the 7th paragraph.)
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English (US)