UPDATE: The ruling National Democratic Party won in convincing fashion, and had secured victory early in the night solely on the basis of the district seats (results for the at-large seats take longer to count and normally only come in the next day). In the event, the NDP won all four at-large seats as well to complete a landslide victory, becoming the first party to win back-to-back elections in the British Virgin Islands since the Virgin Islands Party achieved the feat in the 1999 general election. The NDP's margin of victory (9 seats) and share of the total votes cast (60.2%) were both records for an election.
Previously incumbent candidates are marked in bold where applicable.[1]
2023 general election results - 1st District
Candidate
Party
Votes
Karl Dawson
VIP
Sylvia Moses
PVIM
Chad George
Independent
Incumbent Andrew Fahie (VIP) was unable to contest the seat due to his ongoing legal issues. Outside of by-elections, only two candidates have ever won the D1 seat - Andrew Fahie and Lavity Stoutt.
2023 general election results - 2nd District
Candidate
Party
Votes
Melvin Turnbull Jr.
PVIM
Marieta Flax-Headley
VIP
Troy Christopher
Independent
Incumbent Melvin Turnbull defends the seat he won at the previous two elections.
2023 general election results - 3rd District
Candidate
Party
Votes
Aaron Parillon
NDP
Kevin "OJ" Smith
VIP
Incumbent Julian Fraser won the previous six election in the District.
2023 general election results - 4th District
Candidate
Party
Votes
Luce Hodge-Smith
VIP
Sandy Harrigan-Underhill
NDP
Ian Smith
PVIM
Incumbent Mark Vanterpool (NDP) stood down after winning the D5 seat five times in six elections.
2023 general election results - 5th District
Candidate
Party
Votes
Kye Rymer
VIP
Marvin Blyden
PVIM
Incumbent Kye Rymer defends his seat against political newcomer, Marvin Blyden.
Incumbent Alvera Maduro-Caines won her third consecutive election, but later switched parties. She now faces a challenge by former NDP party leader, Myron Walwyn.
In terms of terminology, confusion sometimes arises as to the level of distinction between "tax havens" and offshore financial centres. One commentator has gone so far as to suggest that offshore financial centre is simply "a politically correct term for what used to be called a tax haven.".[1] There is some merit in the suggestion: one of the leading texts on the subject, by Milton Grundy (ISBN0 421 58590 0), was first published in 1969 under the title Tax Havens: A World Survey, which title was retained with small changes until the 6th edition in 1993, which was entitled Grundy's Tax Havens-Offshore Business Centres: A World Survey. The 7th edition published in 1997 was entitled Offshore Business Centres: A World Survey.
Nonetheless there is a distinction to be drawn between the two terms, although there may be considerable overlap in the jurisdictions which can described as one or other. Tolley's Offshore Service (ISBN040694251X) suggests that Bahamas, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Gibraltar, Guernsey, the Isle of Man, Jersey and Liechtenstein would probably fit on almost any definition of each list. However, jurisdictions such as Delaware and Dubai may be offshore financial centres without being tax havens, and jurisdictions such as Vanuatu may be tax havens without being offshore financial centres.
Part of the difficulty usually stems from the fact that both terms have evolved over the years and have a fluid meaning. Tax havens were originally thought of as low tax jurisdictions to which wealthy individuals could retire and avoid taxation. Now personal residence as a means of avoiding tax is much less common, and a "tax haven" is usually used to either refer to a low tax or no-tax jurisdiction, or jurisdictions who structure their legal architecture to facilitate the mitigation of tax liabilities in third countries. However, the term "tax haven" is also used sometimes in a perjorative fashion, suggesting that a jurisdiction which facilitates cross-border financial crime or unlawful tax evasion.[2] In their 1998 report, OECD dedicated fully half of their criterea for identifying a jurisdiction as a tax haven to issues such as "lack of effective exchange of information" and "lack of transparency", and put very little emphasis on tax indicating only that "no or nominal taxation is the starting point..."[3]
By contrast term offshore financial centre reflects the broader scope of financial services offered within those jurisdictions.[4] For example, Bermuda (which often refers to itself as the first offshore financial centre) now has a relatively minor role in international tax structuring, but a booming economy based on offshore reinsurance markets and management of collective investment vehicles. But it is probably correct to note that most jurisdictions which label themselves as offshore financial centres, also tend to be tax havens by most popular definitions.
^Tolley's International Initiatives Affecting Financial Havens (ISBN0-406-94264-1), in the Glossary of Terms definition for an "offshore financial centre". However, he then qualifies this by adding "The use of this term makes the important point that a jurisdiction may provide specific facilities for offshore financial centres without being in any general sense a tax haven."
^Referring to the jurisdictions which are considered both tax havens and OFCs, Tolley's Offshore Service comments: "The term ... offshore financial centre is now more appropriate, for it better reflects the wide range of commercial and financial activities carried on in the jurisdictions concerned", at para INT.29
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