Have politics suffered in the Caribbean as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic?

A comparison of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and the Dominican Republic.

The Covid-19 Pandemic in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and the Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic response to the pandemic was one of a fearful and unprepared state. They followed a trend similarly shaped yet far worse than many Latin American and Caribbean countries in terms of Coronavirus cases.

The country saw their first reported case of Covid-19 two days after the first confirmed case of the virus in China, followed by a steady linear increase in cases following a general trend. As the virus continued to spread, cases increased rapidly in the Dominican Republic, forming a trend with a heavy right skew of nearly 200 cases/day between 30-40 days following the first confirmed case. This trend continued as new Coronoavirus cases turned into Coronavirus deaths, reaching roughly 15/day between 30-40 days following the first Dominican death. Both trends in cases and deaths per day follow that of many Latin American and Caribbean countries since the start of the global pandemic. As a result of growing cases in the Dominican Republic, immediate action was taken based on World Health Organization ruling of the pandemic rather than cases specific to the Dominican. For example, the President issued lockdown restrictions when the country had only reported 21 Covid-19 cases accompanied by 1 confirmed Covid related death. This sense of urgency was also made evident in the national protocol for the response and treatment of the pandemic released by the Dominican Ministry of Health where all preventative measures are forms of self-isolation and public health initiative such as personal protective equipment and the practice of social distancing. However, the nation did see public uproar and eventual detainment of citizens as a result of preventative measures not resulting in an immediate flattening of the curve.

Tourism being its dominating form of economic activity in the country, it suffered and is suffering a devastating blow during these troubling times. Considering that the nation’s other industries are also influenced by the success of tourism, the economic trend of the Dominican Republic during the pandemic is surely at a great decline.

In contrast, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines had an opposing response to the pandemic, being that the risk factor was lower than in the Dominican Republic. With a population of just over 110,000, Saint Vincent has seen a total of nearly 100 Coronavirus cases with 0 deaths. The nation confronted its first Coronavirus case on March 20th 2020, 5 months after the first recorded case in Wuhan, China. The report followed a previous advisal for the mandatory quarantine of incoming travelers, and the issued early closing of schools, also on the same day. A slow progression of infection ensued,resulting in, 8 months later, almost 10,000 tests being administered, with only 85 recorded cases of Covid 19- 79 of which were fully recovered, and 0% covid-19 related deaths. The management of the virus also attributed to the low number of incoming cases in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. The Ministry of Health issued a corona virus plan, albeit delayed, following the American Airlines’ temporary route closure to Saint Vincent And The Grenadines. The plan covered appropriate areas for quarantine (approved hotels and directory for yachts), as well as travel protocols and mandatory quarantine periods.

“Tourism income losses could reach USD 4.3 billion (4.8% of GDP approximately), about 50% of the expected pre-COVID tourism income (IMF, 2020).”

The nation has surely had a culture shock, as do most countries acting accordingly, it has affected the everyday life of not only tourists but also the working class. In the case of foreign trade, the island still remains in a hung state. Which means that the effects of covid on the nations performance of free trade zones will completely depend on the demand of the locations of these markets. While agriculture holds the smallest fraction of the economy, citizens hold that piece to the highest regard. Agricultural Industry capitalizes off of 52% of national territory and employs 15% of the national labor force. It is evident that the nation is heavily involved in agriculture and services that incorporate the use of farming. Being that the field is being magnified in this nations development, it is important for any political leader, local or national, to pass policy and regulations in favor of agricultural development. Nonetheless the income of the country while not evenly distributed, still seems to focus on keeping its wealth in fields where it has historically been deemed successful. However, its current economic yield once again heavily relies on the climate of other foreign markets.

St. Vincent and the Grenadines and the Dominican Republic have had vastly different experiences with Covid-19, resulting in different management of their current political situations, including 2020 elections.

Caribbean politics during a global pandemic

Similarly to the Caribbean economy, politics in many Caribbean nations have also suffered a great deal. Four of the sixteen national and local elections scheduled for 2020 in the Caribbean were postponed for nations with significant numbers of Covid cases and deaths. In the Dominican Republic specifically, presidential elections are observed every 4 years. During the 2020 Presidential Election, the Dominican Republic tallied its lowest voter turnout in the last century. With only 55% of the registered voters hitting the polls, many questions arise as to why such low numbers contributed to the statistic even though the nation received its highest registration amount ever with 7,529,932. The political safe response to the ratio would be the effects of the global pandemic. Putting fear in the eyes of voters will most definitely suppress a few citizens, however the pandemic would not be the only thing contributing to the sweltering fear of Domincans. The constant inability to provide functioning digital machines not only causes thousands of invalidations but huge delays. Just this past February, what would be known as the month for municipal elections was postponed until the date of March 15th. Violence and uproar flooded the streets of many provinces of the Dominican Republic, as citizens demanded the resignation of the Central Electoral Board. The corruption and tampering was at a large display as citizens often reported only one or two parties being displayed on the electronic ballot. This error was not the only spark of mistrust amongst the citizens, four years prior it was declared that vote-buying and other forms of illegal manipulations occurred in the municipal elections and the presidential election. St. Vincent and the Grenadines also participated in a 2020 general election, however, the nation suffered a better fate than the Dominican Republic, one without election delays. The country had consistently had a high voter turnout for the last 60 years, averaging above around 60% turnout rate due to party competitiveness. The pandemic had no effect on this trend as the 2020 general elections saw a turnout rate of 67%. In conjunction with the medium/high voter turnout rates, political participation is relatively high in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, mainly due to Partisanism. The low rate of covid 19 cases posed no threat to large social gatherings, drawing 15,000 to 20,000 people to campaign rallies and victory celebrations.

Has the Coronavirus Pandemic influenced politics in the Caribbean?

Similarly to economic impact, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines saw a very different political impact from Covid-19 than the Dominican Republic. Similarly to the United States and many other nations undergoing 2020 elections, the political toll of the pandemic resulted in a non-traditional and unpeaceful process in the case of the Dominican Presidential Election. Due to an influx of mail in ballots and an already uneasy society, the postponement of the electoral vote counting process resulted in mass protest unlike any election before. The nation was experiencing shut down following the WHO declaration of Covid-19 as a global pandemic at the same time it was undergoing a presidential election. Protests of this economic shutdown of everyday life made for a society already frustrated with its government. Due to this pre-existing tension, the postponement of a critical election fear arose, revolving around the possibility of an abandonment of democracy and democratic rights for citizens. However, this was not the case in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines which experienced the peaceful process of all 2020 elections with only minor, non-Covid related postponement. This comparison allows us to see the ways in which the worsening of the pandemic in one country resulted in political upheaval, whereas the lack of a severe pandemic in another allowed for a lack of political impact in 2020 elections. These results bring us to the conclusion that the global pandemic has had a lasting impact on politics in the Caribbean, the severity of which being dictated by the spread of the virus in each country.

Amaya Robinson-Glasgow is an International Relations major, graduating in the spring of 2022.

Alexander Ruiz is majoring in Political Science and is graduating in the spring of 2024.

Jessica Sheehan is majoring in Business Administration with a minor in Economics, graduating in the spring of 2022.