The Tribune

By LEANDRA ROLLE

Tribune Chief Reporter

lrolle@tribunemedia.net

INTEREST is growing over who will be the Progressive Liberal Party’s candidate for the Killarney seat in what is expected to be a hotly contested race, with former Senator Robyn Lynes emerging as a potential contender.

The Tribune can confirm that members of the party’s Killarney branch met with Ms Lynes on Monday night. Branch members say she would be a good candidate and no one else has expressed interest in the seat.

Ms Lynes, interviewed by the PLP’s Candidates Committee last week, has said that she is open to any seat the party is willing to offer, declining to specify a particular constituency.

Party insiders have noted that there are limited options but said they have been actively looking for a suitable seat for her.

Meanwhile, PLP Killarney supporters say they are ready to work with whichever candidate is chosen.

“We as a branch, whomever the party sends, we work with. No fussing. No fighting,” said one party faithful.

ZNS General Manager Clint Watson is also being mentioned amid uncertainty over who the party will ultimately nominate for Southern Shores where he has been seeking the nomination.

Senator Ronald Duncombe, who ran unsuccessfully for Killarney in the last election, declined to definitively say whether he plans to run in the area again, telling The Tribune that he will go wherever the prime minister sends him.

“No one has been interviewed for Killarney at this time,” he said.

Mr Duncombe said he, his team, and the branch have continued working in Killarney.

He expressed confidence that the PLP could win the seat even if he’s not chosen, pointing to a possible split in who FNMs support given former Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis’ intention to run as an independent.

“I’ve lived here for almost 20 years so we know what we're looking for,” Mr Duncombe said. “If you look at the numbers at the last election, we were very close, and that's why we stayed the course and I'm confident, whether it's me as the candidate or someone else, and you put it on record, the Progressive Liberal Party will be the party that wins Killarney.”

Nonetheless, some members of the PLP’s Killarney branch claim that Mr Duncombe has isolated himself from the body and is operating with his own faction.

They said he does good work with the school, pays his branch dues, and attends functions, often making donations.

“But some feel he isn’t doing enough for the branch itself,” one member added.

Other members said there has been growing curiosity among party supporters as to whether he would even run.

Many assumed Mr Duncombe would not seek the seat, claiming he has not formally informed the branch of his interest.

The Free National Movement has ratified Senator Michela Barnett-Ellis for the seat.

The Tribune understands that the PLP plans to ratify its remaining candidates on Sunday.