Victory Dance? Mapp Celebrates On Stage At Final Rally Before Run-Off Election

On Sunday, two days before the run-off election, gubernatorial candidates were scrambling to get their messages out to undecided voters who may have voted for either Soraya Diase-Coffelt or Mona Barnes in the General Election, and the thousands more who did not vote for one reason or another. The Christensen-Ottley team was on St. John for a campaign event, while the Mapp-Potter team put together a rally of its own at the camp’s Peter’s Rest headquarters. It was there that Kenneth Mapp, seemingly tasting victory come Tuesday, broke into dance before giving a speech in front of a massive crowd of supporters.

That visual of hundreds, and at times, over 1,000 people was a reality for the Mapp-Potter campaign as supporters came from all across St. Croix to gather one last time before Tuesday’s runoff election. Just days before, on Friday, the Christensen campaign held a similar event at its Barren Spot headquarters, but the enthusiasm and turnout that marked the Mapp-Potter team’s effort on Sunday night, appeared not to be there for the Christensen camp, a suspicion that became a reality when the St. Croix certified election results came in on Saturday night, showing Mapp had defeated Christensen on the Big Island by almost 3,000 votes.

Kenneth Mapp greets supporters.

The people who attended the rally were excited about Mapp’s prospects of winning, and so, too, were the pundits who took to the stage to talk in favor of their candidate’s bid. Some said Mapp had already won, but suspected “funny business” might have taken place, making reference to the November 4 General Election. Another said Mapp supporters should go out and vote with their faces pushed up, demonstrating their frustration with the state of affairs on St. Croix.

Kenneth Mapp greets supporters.

Then, the territorial manager of Mapp’s campaign, Franklin Johnson, took to the stage firing up his candidate’s supporters and urging them to go out one more time on Tuesday to vote. He said he loved the enthusiasm he saw when he looked out at the crowd.

Johnson also took a few swipes at the Christensen camp, saying that bringing down Hillary Clinton to the Virgin Islands was a last-ditch effort that would not work. “What does Hillary know about the Virgin Islands?” Johnson asked. “What does she know about Juan Luis Hospital?” Franklin then spoke in a mocked version of Clinton’s voice, sending the audience into laughter, as he made his case for the team he supports, and later welcomed Osbert Potter to the stage.

When Potter took to the stage, he wasted no time in energizing the crowd, telling supporters the runoff election is a relay race that will be won on St. Croix, explaining that while St. Thomas and St. John would start off with the baton, St. Croix, he said, would be the island that would leave the Christensen camp behind with a “blowout victory.”

Potter also addressed the recent rumor circulating the territory that he and Mapp had a fight–one so bad, the rumor claims, police had to step in. He said the rumor was completely false and accused the Christensen camp of being “desperate” in its bid to win the election. Potter’s speech was soon over, making room for the man those in attendance, and thousands more across the territory, expect to be the next Governor of the Virgin Islands.

Kenneth Mapp shook Potter’s hand as he appeared on stage and immediately broke into dance. He shook a little and then stopped, then moved his body again–actions that elicited loud cheering from the crowd, with some supporters even asking the candidate to dance a second time. Mapp, however, declined. Instead, the candidate asked his supporters to draw closer as he delved into the serious matters and the reason why they should once more show their support by voting in the run-off election on Tuesday. He reiterated many of the messages heard on the campaign trail, highlighting his economic plan, and making his case for being the team most prepared to tackle the ills facing the Virgin Islands.

Mapp-Potter supporters.

Sunday night’s event would be the last major rally for the Mapp-Potter team on St. Croix before Tuesday’s run-off, but canvassing, supporters say, would continue into Monday and throughout the day on Tuesday.

The mood at the headquarters was festive–the operation of a candidate who had already won in the minds of his supporters. But, that’s not something that will be known until November 18 when, for the last time in 2014, voters will go to the polls to choose between Christensen-Ottley and Mapp Potter for governor.