UDP Rebuilding Continues Despite Senior Departures
Two senior resignations and just eight months to prepare for municipal elections. That combination is fueling new questions about whether the UDP is ready for the campaign ahead. National Campaign Manager Juliet Thimbriel and Public Relations Committee Chair Audrey Wallace have left their leadership posts, but UDP Leader Tracy Taegar-Panton says supporters should not mistake the changes for a retreat. She insists both women remain committed to the party’s rebuilding efforts and will continue working behind the scenes.
Tracy Taegar-Panton
Tracy Taegar-Panton, Leader, United Democratic Party
“Both Ms. Audrey Wallace and Ms. Juliet Thimbriel are valuable members of the United Democratic Party. They have contributed, and they continue to contribute to the rebuilding of the United Democratic Party. For reasons that are both personal and professional, they’ve indicated to me that they’re not able to take on the substantive role of being the chair of the Public Relations Committee or having to take on the role of national campaign manager respectively. But make no mistake, they continue to work very closely with the leadership team. In fact, tomorrow morning, I will be on Wave Radio along with Ms. Thimbriel. She continues to lead the charge in terms of the unraveling of the misuse of the public purse and public resources by the kind of work that she does, investigative work she’s doing on Wave Radio and, and Wave Television. So let’s not be distracted by those whose only intention is to try and create disruption or who try to undermine the efforts of this party to rebuild and to stand on its strongest leg and to be ready to govern this country whenever the next elections are called.”
We reached out to Wallace and Thimbriel for their take on the situation and while Timbrel did not respond, Wallace confirmed that she stepped away from the post due to personal reasons.
Taegar-Panton Dismisses Concerns Over UDP’s Campaign Finances
The UDP may be facing questions about money, but Party Leader Tracy Taegar-Panton insists it will not enter the next municipal elections empty-handed or unprepared. With the March 2027 campaign drawing closer, many are questioning whether the party has the resources to field candidates and mount a competitive nationwide campaign. Taegar-Panton, however, says the UDP has heard those doubts before. She points to successful conventions and improvements at party headquarters as proof that detractors have repeatedly underestimated its ability to organize, rebuild and deliver. Now, she is promising full slates in municipalities across the country, expressing confidence that the UDP will have both the candidates and the machinery needed to compete at the polls.
Tracy Taegar-Panton
Tracy Taegar-Panton, Leader, United Democratic Party
“Not too long ago when we had a convention in October of 2024. We were told there is no way we had the resources to do it. And then we had a convention in December of 2025, and the media touted the horn that no way we had the resources to do it. We came back to establish the headquarters, and you all were present when we got here, and you saw the level of disrepair and dysfunction, and the media joined the noise to say there is no way we could do it. I go further. There’s been a lot of noise about the ability of the United Democratic Party to be able to have municipal slates in nine municipalities because according to the noise, we can’t afford to bring the slates together and effectively compete In March of 2027, I hope we can put that issue definitively to rest.”
Taegar-Panton also encouraged the public to avoid listening to what she describes as political noise.
Shyne Seeks $1.4 Million in Damages in UDP Court Battle
The UDP’s bitter leadership battle could soon carry a price tag of more than one-point-four million dollars. Former party leader Moses “Shyne” Barrow is seeking to expand his ongoing court challenge against Tracy Taegar-Panton by adding financial claims linked to the party’s leadership dispute and the October 2024 unity convention. But UDP Chair Sheena Pitts says reports of a new lawsuit are misleading. Speaking at a press conference today, Pitts explained that Barrow is attempting to amend the case already before the court, not launch a separate legal action. The original dispute remains unresolved, and the court must first decide whether the additional claims will form part of the proceedings.
Sheena Pitts
Sheena Pitts, Chair, United Democratic Party
“There is no new lawsuit by Mr. Barrow or the party. If you could recall after the October 2024 conventions. He did take and asked the court for interim relief after we had occupied the headquarters, and we were in court for that. You saw when our lawyer flew in and you saw when we interviewed us on it, It is that same case he has sought a way to change and include a claim for money against the honorable Panton. So, there is nothing new. Same old lawsuit. And the matter is before the court. In law we say it’s sub judice so as a council I cannot with good sense, I cannot disclose any further than I have.”
Barrow wants damages for property losses, legal fees, lost parliamentary income, reputational harm and personal distress.
Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.