VAZ

BLOODSHOT EYES and a gold, green and black T-shirt with 'Jamaica Mi Born' are legacies of Ann-Marie Vaz's latest West Portland sojourn. Three days before today's by-election, the wife of Jamaica Labour Party candidate Daryl Vaz was eager for the end.

"It's been exhausting for me as a wife and mother. To see what my husband has been through to prove his passion for the constituency has been emotionally draining," she told The Gleaner at her home in the upscale St Andrew neighbourhood of Cherry Gardens.

For the second time in 18 months, Daryl Vaz will run for the West Portland seat. His opponents are the People's National Party's (PNP) Kenneth Rowe and Ras Astor Black, an independent.

A lengthy legal battle waged by the PNP through Abe Dabdoub resulted in a by-election. Dabdoub was Vaz's opponent in West Portland for the September 2007 general election, which Vaz won by 944 votes.

The appeal court upheld the chief justice's decision in February.

Union threatened

Ann-Marie is Daryl Vaz's second wife; they married 10 months after meeting at a party and celebrated their seventh anniversary in December. She says his decision to get back into politics after a break in the 1990s threatened the union.

"I never wanted anything to do with politics. It caused a lot of damage to our marriage initially," she said.

While not expanding on that 'damage', Vaz said, she has settled into the role of a politician's wife, and believes her husband has done enough for voters in West Portland to give him another win.

"The people there recognise and appreciate the work he has been doing. The feeling is that 'This man is working, let's give him a chance'," she said.

Daryl Vaz is one of the most explosive personalities in Jamaican politics. His stay in West Portland has not been without incident. His wife witnessed an ugly scene between him and police in the constituency during a rally celebrating the JLP's local government election victory in December 2007.

"I've always known of his persona and things that people said. Those are things I won't get into," she said.

There was no political tension in the district of Duff House, Manchester, where Ann-Marie Lyew was born 43 years ago. The eldest of five children, she attended Hampton School in St Elizabeth and moved to Kingston in her late teens to attend Alpha Academy.

She has a teenage son and 12-year-old daughter from a previous relationship. Her marriage to Daryl Vaz has produced a daughter, Victoria, now six.

Analysts are predicting a tight contest in West Portland, though most give the combative Vaz the advantage. Ann-Marie Vaz expects her husband to win, but says she will welcome the result either way.

"When it's over, we can finally get back to running the country's business. The only 'P' I want to hear about after Monday is people," she said.

howard.campbell@gleanerjm.com