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Inside the UDP Power Struggle
posted (July 10, 2020)
On Sunday, for the second time in 5 months, the UDP will go back to the party's highest decision making body, the national convention, to select a new leader. The ruling party does so dangerously close to a general election, so it is hoping that the convention will be as bloodless as possible.

Last night we told you all about the austere trappings of this party event - which will be no party.

Tonight, Jules Vasquez looks at some of the political history and the power dynamics going into Sunday's convention. He starts in mid February, when perhaps prematurely, we declared Saldivar political dead meat:

But he came back from a convention defeat in 2010, and 2016, still to gain the greatest heights in the UDP political pantheon - even with a very dark cloud directly above his head - a feat of unmatched daring, not to be underestimated. But now that he has gone from victor to vapor in less than 72 hours, it will be interesting to see if Saldivar stages another comeback.

Comeback? He never left! And now he's one step away from getting the same job back - and has at least a 50/50 chance to do so on Sunday. It will be the fourth convention face off between Patrick Faber and John Saldivar.

In 2010, both ran for Chairman and Faber beat Saldivar 422 to 122. In 2016, they both ran for Deputy Leader, and Faber won again 336 to 248.

Then in February of this year, Saldivar won when it mattered most: as the UDP Leader. He beat Faber 342 to 277 - a 115 vote margin.

The question for Faber now is, with the same list of delegates, how can he recover that significant margin just 5 months later?

Well to do so he will need delegates, mayors and their standard bearers to defect from the Saldivar camp en masse. There have been some high profile endorsements like this one from Shyne Barrow, who did an enormous flip-flop by coming back to Faber's side - after calling him this last November: "malicious, vindictive and victimizing and petty."

But, now, not even a year later, Shyne writes on Facebook, quote, "it is my firm belief at this moment in time, after healed wounds and battle scars, that Patrick Faber is the leader we need to win the war against the PUP for the sake of our Nation and party!"

Of course, Shyne is only one defection, and the margin is 115, so only Sunday's tally will tell if Faber was able to recover all that ground.

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