Majority of J’cans still strong on term limits

A large majority of Jamaicans remain strongly in favour of term limits for politicians at all levels of elected office, according to a new public opinion poll that spotlights the Holness administration’s failure to act on its own nine-year-old promise as another election looms.

The findings of the RJRGLEANER-commissioned Don Anderson poll show that 76 per cent of respondents believe all councillors and members of parliament (MPs) should face term limits, while an even higher 78 per cent say prime ministers should also have a cap on their time in office.

Anderson, CEO of Market Research Services Limited, said the findings represent a broad national consensus.

“This was a view held by persons right across the demographic spectrum, meaning by persons of all age groups and both genders,” the pollster said in his analysis. “Because the view was supported by such a high percentage, there was very little variation across the various age cohorts.”

However, he noted that younger voters – especially those aged 18-34 – were particularly strong on the issue, while support declined slightly among seniors 65 and older, though two-thirds in that group still backed the idea.

The survey was conducted among 1,033 registered voters aged 18 and over, between May 18 and June 7. It has a margin of error of plus or minus three per cent.

In February 2016, at a mass rally in the final stretch of the general election campaign, then-Opposition Leader Dr Andrew Holness promised to begin the legislative process to introduce term limits for the prime minister within his first 100 days in office.

That never happened.

Holness is now actively campaigning for a third consecutive term, a move that Dr Dayton Campbell, general secretary of the Opposition People’s National Party (PNP), has called a betrayal of the prime minister’s own word. There was also a promise for fixed election dates and impeachment legislation.

“The very individual that said two terms should be the maximum is now campaigning for a third term. It doesn’t make sense,” said Campbell at a Gleaner Editors’ Forum last month.

The PNP, however, has not formally adopted a position on term limits, though other party figures like Campbell and Senator Peter Bunting have publicly supported the idea. “Two terms would be sufficient for a prime minister to achieve his or her goals and allow someone with a fresh pair of eyes to be at the helm,” Campbell said.

From a voting intention perspective, the latest Don Anderson poll found that 78 per cent of PNP supporters back term limits for MPs and councillors, compared to 70 per cent of Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) supporters. Among undecideds and those not likely to vote, support remained strong at 77.5 and 78.5 per cent, respectively.

Support for term limits for the prime minister showed a similar trend. Seventy-eight per cent of the respondents support term limits for the head of government. On voting intention, 83 per cent of likely PNP voters were in favour, while 65 per cent of JLP voters supported the idea.

Notably, the strongest support across all age groups for capping the prime minister’s time came from those aged 25-34 and 55-64, both clocking in at over 83 per cent.

“Just 63 per cent of those 65 and older supported term limits for the PM, which was the lowest level of support recorded,” Anderson observed.

The sentiment isn’t new.

A September 2023 RJRGLEANER poll also found overwhelming support for limits, with 77.1 per cent backing a cap on the number of terms a prime minister may serve and 72 per cent favouring term limits for MPs. That survey also delved into how many terms respondents considered reasonable – a majority said two terms, both for MPs and the prime minister.

Despite these results, the Government’s Constitutional Reform Committee has not included term limits in its current deliberations, and no draft legislation has been tabled.

Holness has not addressed the matter on the campaign platform so far.

Political scientist Damion Gordon has argued that while the imposition of term limits is gaining public traction, it remains relatively rare in parliamentary democracies, which traditionally rely on regular elections rather than entrenched restrictions. “Parliamentary democracies hold regular elections but do not institutionalise fixed election dates or term limits,” he explained in an April 2025 Gleaner commentary.

In contrast, over 80 per cent of presidential and semi-presidential systems – particularly in Latin America and Africa – have formalised presidential term limits. Gordon said Jamaica’s appetite for limits mirrors a broader global trend, with 75 per cent of Africans, 83 per cent of Americans, and a majority of Canadians favouring such caps on elected officials.

However, Gordon cautioned that arguments against term limits – such as the theory of electoral accountability, which relies on voters to reward or punish politicians – do not easily apply in Jamaica. “This theory only holds up in the context of healthy democracies characterised by an informed and engaged electorate ... This may not be the case in Jamaica,” he warned, pointing instead to clientelism, partisan loyalty, and incumbency advantages that often override performance in elections.

“The circumstantial evidence suggests that indefinite terms in office engender complacency and mediocrity and fuel voter apathy.” In this context, Gordon argued, “Term limits can establish safeguards against the abuse of power since our elections and governing institutions do not always perform as intended,” calling them “a de facto exercise of power by citizens” that could reinvigorate democracy and electoral competition.

editrial@gleanerjm.com