Region 10 RDC Chairmanship ends in deadlock; Minister Manickchand to decide

The election for Regional Chairman of the Region 10 Regional Democratic Council (RDC) ended in a deadlock on Friday, with both A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) nominee Dominique Blair and We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) candidate Mark Goring securing nine votes each.

The tie came after the three councillors of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) and the lone representative of the Forward Guyana Movement (FGM) voted alongside APNU’s five councillors in support of Blair, effectively blocking WIN’s majority advantage despite the party winning nine of the 18 council seats in the 2025 elections.

Region 10, officially known as Upper Demerara–Upper Berbice, has historically been considered an APNU stronghold. However, the 2025 election results reshaped the regional political landscape, giving WIN the largest single bloc of council seats.

The deadlock now leaves the decision in the hands of Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Priya Manickchand, who will be required to convene a special meeting to cast the deciding vote.

WIN candidate Mark Goring expressed his frustration with the process, citing procedural irregularities during the vote. “First of all, I must say, I am much disappointed in the APNU councillors who were…soliciting the support of PPP and FGM to get the chairmanship. However, the REO who would have go against the procedure we’re supposed to follow whereby at the beginning, I would have moved a motion and the REO disregarded that motion. They have show of hands and that motion was seconded, that motion was supposed to carry and so we will challenge that,” Goring said.

He added that, according to the Municipal and District Councils Act (Chapter 28:01), a second round of voting is required in the event of a tie, a process he claims was not followed. “I still think the elections need to go over again before it reaches the Minister. The constitution clearly did not follow and so I believe this election is null and void until another election for chairman,” he said.

Goring also expressed skepticism about the fairness of the ministerial decision. “Minister Manickchand, I believe, is relatively fair. However, we have seen the party line…so I have no faith in Priya making that decision towards me. If she does, that will totally surprise me,” he added.

WIN party leader, Azruddin Mohamed, also voiced concern about the vote. “The people in Region 10 voted for WIN…so we really wanted to represent the people of this region because for years now, Region 10 has been left behind. The Minister of Local Government, Ms. Manickchand, she gotta make the pick between Mark Goring from WIN and Dominique from APNU so let’s see who she will pick,” Mohamed said, noting that WIN intends to hold other parties accountable for attempting to block its leadership.

The full list of elected councillors in Region 10 is as follows:

APNU: Dominique Blair, Suzette Gordon, Donna Perry, Faye Rodrigues, Orlon Rogers
FGM: Shondell Jerrick
PPP/C: Odessa Adams, Sarah Gibson, Nikita Roberts
WIN: Denzel Chapman, Tamicka Duke, Nandy Miriam Fiedtkou, Mark Goring, Michelle Hope, Leola Narine, Yoland Nedd, Judith Wade-Martin, Hubert Williams

The outcome now hinges on Minister Manickchand’s decision, which will determine the leadership of the RDC and set the tone for regional governance in the Upper Demerara–Upper Berbice region.