Devonshire South Central voters go to the polls next week to choose a replacement for John Barritt, the outgoing MP who stepped down after relinquishing the interim leadership of the One Bermuda Alliance.Mr Barritt did so to fulfil a pledge that he would give up his seat if the elected leader of the OBA was not a sitting MP, which is a precondition for being official Leader of the Opposition.As it turned out, Senator Craig Cannonier was the winner of the vote, defeating Shadow Finance Minister ET (Bob) Richards.Mr Barritt duly stepped down and Mr Cannonier was nominated as the OBA’s candidate.The Progressive Labour Party nominated Anthony Richardson, the former Accountant General and former interim chief executive officer of the Bermuda Health Council.And former United Bermuda Party official David Sullivan threw his hat into the ring as an Independent.That’s healthy. Voters deserve a choice and that is as true in Devonshire South Central as it is anywhere else.Indeed, because the constituency was considered to be a UBP stronghold where the PLP traditionally did poorly, Mr Sullivan gives voters more choice.And as a new party, even one that came from most of the now dissolved United Bermuda Party and the Bermuda Democratic Alliance, it is important that Mr Cannonier and the OBA be tested.Mr Sullivan has based his campaign on two premises. One is that party politics is unhealthy for Bermuda and does not work, and the other is that the OBA has essentially imposed Mr Cannonier on the voters.Mr Sullivan’s first point may resonate to some degree. Party politics certainly is not perfect, and this was exacerbated by the “deadly embrace” of the UBP and the PLP. But no one has been persuasive in explaining how 36 independent MPs would go about governing the Island. And since the OBA in fact is attempting to develop a new form of politics, it can be argued they should be given a chance to make it work.Mr Sullivan has another problem; namely that until a few months ago, he was fully involved in party politics. It is possible that his change of heart has more to do with the dissolution of the UBP than with the disenchantment with party politics in general.As for Mr Sullivan’s other point, that Mr Cannonier has been imposed on Devonshire South Central, his candidacy is welcome since the whole electorate will have the opportunity to vote rather than a smaller group of primary voters. So the test will come next week.As for Mr Richardson, he seems to have run energetically given that he faces an uphill climb. But he has not been persuasive on the question of Government contracts, and his main argument, that as a Government MP, he would be able to get things done may face problems, given the current state of the economy and the low popularity of the Government.Voters seem more likely to want to send Government a message.Mr Cannonier has the hardest task in some ways because he is expected to win, and to win handily. He is also following an incumbent who is massively popular in the area, having represented it since 1993, and who was well known for steady and consistent constituency work.To that extent, and as the putative Leader of the Opposition and potential Premier, Mr Cannonier needs to show he can be a vote winner. He has the benefit of canvassing with Mr Barritt, but he must win on his own.To that extent, he must show the voters that he has substance and has a plan for getting Bermuda out of the recession.