Arthur

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (CMC):

It will be a close fight between the governing Barbados Labour Party (BLP) and the Opposition Democratic Labour Party (DLP) in tomorrow's general election, with the incumbent being favoured to retake power, says a new poll published yesterday.

The survey, conducted by The Cave Hill Associates Polling Organisation (Chapo)/Boxhill poll, said the Owen Arthur-led BLP will secure its fourth straight hold on power on January 15. This is in contrast to a recent poll, done by the Caribbean Development Research Services, which predicted victory for the Opposition DLP.

According to the Chapo poll published by The Nation newspaper on Sunday, "it would appear that the BLP is likely to have a marginal win on Tuesday, assuming, of course, that no major event occurs to remove the BLP's advantage be-tween now and election day.

"We estimate the BLP will probably win between 50.4 per cent and 53.4 per cent of the popular vote, giving them between 16 to 20 seats" in the 30-seat parliament.

The Chapo poll predicts that the DLP may get between 49.6 per cent and 46.6 per cent of the popular vote, giving them 10 to 14 seats.

The governing party still has the advantage, especially when it comes to the issue of leadership which is a critical issue for voters in the January 15 election.

The poll said, in the battle between Arthur and the DLP's David Thompson, Arthur is significantly ahead with 48.1 per cent popular support compared with Thompson's 33.1 per cent.

The poll, conducted between January 4 and 7, also shows that the BLP continues its lead over the DLP in relation to which party is perceived as the best to run the country.

The poll was conducted using a sample of 1,294 enumerated voters. It has an estimated margin of error of plus or minus three per cent.