GREAT BAY--Minister of Finance Marinka Gumbs has become what appears to be the first political figure to publicly declare an intention to contest St. Maarten’s next scheduled parliamentary election in 2028, and she did so without any formal announcement, campaign launch or political fanfare.
The indication came almost casually in response to a comment on Facebook following Gumbs’ announcement in Parliament on Thursday that Government intends to introduce an 8 percent pension contribution for Ministers and Members of Parliament, who currently do not make an employee contribution toward the pension benefits attached to their political office.
Responding to the announcement, a Facebook user wrote: “I’m so happy to hear this, finally a minister with some morals. Are you running next election?”
Gumbs replied simply: “God’s willing I intend to.” The Peoples' Tribune reached out to the Moinister about the statement before publishing this piece.
The brief exchange effectively provides the first public indication so far of an individual politician’s intention to be on the ballot when St. Maarten next returns to the polls. A review of publicly available reports did not turn up an earlier declaration by another prospective candidate for the next scheduled parliamentary election.
It should be noted that Gumbs’ comment represents an expression of her intention to run, rather than a formal candidacy. Candidate lists for an election are officially established much later through the legally prescribed postulation and electoral process.
Under St. Maarten’s constitutional framework, Members of Parliament are elected for a four-year term, although Parliament can be dissolved before the completion of that term, triggering an earlier election. The current parliamentary term followed the August 19, 2024 snap election, making 2028 the expected year for the next regular election if the term runs its course.
Gumbs is no stranger to the ballot.
She contested the August 19, 2024 snap parliamentary election as the number six candidate on the Democratic Party list, receiving 187 votes, according to the final official results published by St. Maarten’s Central Voting Bureau.
The Democratic Party received 2,071 votes overall and secured three seats in Parliament in that election. The party’s three highest vote-getters were Grisha Heyliger-Marten with 480 votes, Sarah Wescot-Williams with 386 and Viren Kotai with 338. Gumbs, with 187 votes, was the fourth-highest vote-getter on the DP slate.
She subsequently became Minister of Finance in the coalition Government formed following the election.
