The by-election results are in from Sandys North, the electorate has spoken with its pen and feet, and the country is still swirling with conversation and opinion. As expected, the Progressive Labour Party candidate, the Reverend Emily Gail Dill, emerged as the winner from a turnout of only 456 legal ballots cast.

Dr Dill received 162 votes, followed by Marc Bean, of the Free Democratic Movement, with 108, independent candidate Ci’re Bean with 95 votes and One Bermuda Alliance candidate Carl Neblett with 91.

Although it was a victory for the PLP in what can be described as a safe seat, this election result showed the overwhelming majority of votes cast — 62 per cent — went to the opposing candidates in a clear signal against the administration of David Burt.

Considering the PLP and the OBA are the mainstream parties, when accounting for their vote combined as 253, it means 203 votes were unconventional or from the dissatisfied sector, confirming what I have said many times here previously — that the largest single constituency is a category we can call the swing or uncommitted voter.

Mr Bean has tapped into that sector, as has Sir John Swan and the independents. If nothing changes, the same saga as seen in Sandys North will be repeated in the next General Election: the PLP will emerge victorious, potentially with the same number or more seats, but with fewer votes.

The PLP has a core support that will be there reliably no matter what the party does or does not do. The OBA is diminished to the point of near irrelevance, only maintaining a grip on the southern spine of Bermuda from Tucker’s Town to Paget. The FDM, meanwhile, is trying to find its constituency.

Without being demeaning, the challenge lies between the leadership of the OBA and the FDM to step aside and allow a new entity to emerge. They should do so for the good of the country.

What is required is a new organisation with a different approach that is more democratic and inclusive — which is what the independents identify as essential to a new wave of political awareness and attitude. In short, a participatory democracy.

As the most organised and established party that is recognised as the official Opposition, the ball is in the OBA’s court. If leader Jarion Richardson and the OBA continue on this present path, they will ensure nothing else will form.

It has been proven historically that Bermuda cannot tolerate three parties, no matter how well-intended — they will simply hand the PLP another election victory. That aside, structurally, the FDM is simply formatted as an alternative to the PLP.

This may seem like a tall order to achieve, and it is, but it should be made easier when considering that it is necessary for the good of the country.

It is worth repeating that the PLP’s existence as a dominant force depends on the continuation of the OBA. The electorate continues to show the irrelevance of the Opposition but also the absolute dissatisfaction with the present government. The country is crying out for something new, and there are only a couple of egos preventing and holding up progress.