Barbadian bloggers have been among the most politically active in the Caribbean for some time now, and the general election in Barbados on 15 January triggered a major flood of commentary and analysis. The House of Assembly (established in the 17th century, soon after the island was first colonised by Britain) contains thirty seats, filled via first-past-the-post elections. Two major parties — the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) and the Democratic Labour Party (DLP) — competed for a majority. Both parties are basically centrist, with few ideological differences (so few that in 2006 the head of the DLP and sitting Leader of the Opposition crossed the floor and joined the then BLP government). The major issue in the election campaign, therefore, was whether the the country needed continuity of governance — under the BLP and Prime Minister Owen Arthur, who had governed for 14 years — or “change” and a fresh start, under the DLP and its leader, David Thompson. The campaign was spiced with allegations of corruption against the BLP government. The popular and outspoken Barbados Free Press highlighted many of these in the days leading up to the polls — for instance, in posts on alleged illegal “commissions” on government spending and mismanagement at the state-owned company ECCI. Bajegirl at Cheese-on-bread suggested that the parties should reveal the sources of their campaign funds, and noted that party activists seemed “more desperate” than in previous campaigns: There're allegations of wiretapping of DLP calls, DLP billboards being torn down (apparently they were erected illegally, so it's all par for the course), and even the disturbing report of death threats against UWI Lecturer Dr. Don Marshall. Get your act together, people! No matter who wins on January 16 we still have to live on this blessed little rock. “The electorate faces a tough decision,” said The Bajan Dream Project on election day: The incumbent party, which has been in power for a little under fifteen years, has been the only government that many young Barbadians would have ever known. Old habits die hard and truthfully, this government has not performed too badly during its three terms insofar as employment and certain human development indicators are concerned. In addition, the ruling party ran a tough and convincing campaign that challenged Barbadians’ natural predilection for change, no doubt bolstered by an intensive media presence over the past three weeks. On the other hand, a new and re-energized Democratic Labour Party is at its closest taste of victory. Its solid performance in opinion polls and its mainstreaming of accountability, transparency, poverty eradication and democracy struck a chord with a number of undecided voters, causing this election to be inevitably too close to call. But, although the polls suggested a close race, the results on election night were decisive: the DLP won 20 of the 30 seats. “There will be a new government leading Barbados, and the new Prime Minister will be David Thompson,” wrote Living in Barbados, who also reported that: While PM Owen Arthur and deputy PM Mia Mottley safely held their seats, the 12% swing to the Dems led to a slew of defeats, including for nine ministers…. Some are contending that the late public push by the Dems’ support of introducing integrity legislation was a cause of a late surge in support. Barbados Free Press agreed that the proposed integrity legislation was a major factor: Public apathy and cynicism all changed on January 3rd when David Thompson announced that the DLP would introduce Integrity Legislation and Freedom of Information laws within 100 days of forming a new government…. Would the DLP have declared a commitment to Integrity Legislation without the pressure from Barbados blogs? The Bajan Dream Project, on the other hand, suggested that economic factors may have had much to do with the BLP's defeat: For the past term Barbadians saw skyrocketing food costs next to severe overruns on capital works projects; closure of small, black enterprises next to competition from monopolistic conglomerates; exclusion from referenda on unpopular and unwanted policies such as the CSME next to a government that resisted criticism; dwindling hopes for housing next to large-scale land sale for multimillion-dollar condominium developments and the inefficiency of poverty relief next to elected officials who appeared to be far-removed from the plight. And Amit at Pull! Push! suggested that “the DLP will come under intense scrutiny”: especially with regards to economical performance issues. The D's asked the people for a change and they have said ‘yes’ (and very loudly based on the voting results).