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United Democrats win but need coalition partner

PHILIPSBURG - The United Democrats have won the parliamentary elections but not by the landslide the party was aiming for. The preliminary results give the UD 7 seats. One short of a majority; the National Alliance did surprisingly well, winning...

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stmaartennews.com
Dear Reader

It's the day after!

Theo Heyliger is once again the highest vote-getter in the country. He is the only person to earn his seat outright with 1289 votes. The threshold was 903 votes to get your own seat. The only other candidate to come close to this number is NA leader Silveria Jacobs with 896 votes.

We commend the SMCP with their first seat in their second showing. We have used this platform in the past to indicate why we thought the SMCP would do well. The secret to Wycliffe Smith's success is not disappearing from the political arena after the 2016 elections.

The coming days will show whether the biggest party will follow the advice of the SMCP to follow the process in forming a government by starting out by appointing an informateur and consulting all the parties about their thoughts on possible coalitions.

Our poll today offers our readers the option to voice their opinion on a possible coalition as well.

Finally, see below for the list of candidates who will be going to Parliament based on the results of yesterday's elections.

It was long day yesterday. The voter turnout of 62% turned out to be not so bad as expected. We are also proud of the St. Maarten people who have exercised their democratic rights despite the odds.

Have a restful day.

The Publisher
StMaartenNews.com

PS: Email  info@stmaartennews.com to request us to sign you up for a Yearly subscription for only $75. We will email you an electronic invoice for payment at your convenience. You can choose to pay with your creditcard online; do a banktransfer to our WIB or RBC account; or pay with your debitcard, check or cash at any of our three (3) payment locations. See Contact Us for address information.

###   Advisory Message ###
For the month of  February 2018  the five-volume  The Laws of St. Maarten can be purchased at the reduced price of  $50.00  per set at Van Dorp Bookstores on Illidge Road and in Simpson Bay.
We encourage every citizen on St. Maarten to buy and READ  The Laws of St. Maarten  . See the advertorial below in this newsletter for more information.
###   End of Advisory Message ###
StMaartenNews.com Political News
Position Tourist Bureau interim director Brison under fire

PHILIPSBURG - The interim director of the Tourist Bureau, Rolando Brison, obtained a declaration of no objection from the police in 2016 when he was a candidate to become the director of the St. Maarten Tourism Authority, even though the...

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stmaartennews.com
StMaartenNews.com Feature Article
When our ship comes in

By Chris Morvan ~ An open-top sports car speeds around the twisting mountain road with magnificent sea views on the other side and only a metal barrier preventing the driver from taking the bouncing, exploding shortcut to the beach. The part of...

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stmaartennews.com
StMaartenNews.com Election News
United Democrats (UD) in the driver's seats

GREAT BAY - Based on the preliminary results as of 12:30am tonight, the United Democrats (UD) party is leading by 7 seats. The count from 15 polling stations is giving the following results: UD 4209 votes (good for 7 seats) SDM 314 votes NA 2670...

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stmaartennews.com
Official voter turnout results as of 8pm

Philipsburg - As of 8pm the official voter turnout is 13932, accounting for 62% of the total voting population of 22559. That is 650 (4,5%) less than the 2016 results at the same time of 14582, which accounted for 65% of the total voting...

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stmaartennews.com
The key to integrity

By Hilbert Haar ~ Politicians are always quick to suggest that 'this' elections is really important and every time I hear this I think really? Our politicians also like to talk about 'the next four years,' knowing darn well that since 10-10-10 the...

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stmaartennews.com
Voters decide; some reluctantly; some enthusiastically

GREAT BAY - On the 26th of February 2018, exactly 173 days after hurricane Irma wrecked havoc in St. Maarten, elections are again being held again due to the impromptu dissolution of the Marlin cabinet. This election is coming exactly seventeen...

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stmaartennews.com
Update: Voter turnout as of 6pm

Philipsburg - As of 6pm the voter turnout is 11572, which is 51% of the total voting population (22559). That is 541 less than 2016 at the same time (12113). At this rate, with two more hours to go, we are trending over 60%. Below is the voter...

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stmaartennews.com
Turnout falls behind 2016

Philipsburg - Voters showed an appetite for the elections during the first hour after the polls opened on Monday at 8 a.m. but in the next two hours turnout slowed down. At 9 a.m. 1,853 voters had cast their vote, well above the 1,331 that did so ...

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stmaartennews.com
Voters turned away

PHILIPSBURG - At 10 a.m. on Monday morning stmaartennews.com received the first report about irregularities during the elections. Attorney Jojanneke Deelstra reported that she was turned away at the polling station in Middle Region at the Sr....

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stmaartennews.com
Important Election Notices

GOVERNMENT OF SINT MAARTEN INFORMS ** ** Manual for the voter ** (Art. 52, third section, Electoral Ordinance) You cast your vote by coloring red with a pencil the white dot in front of the name of the candidate of your choice. The ballot paper...

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stmaartennews.com
StMaartenNews.com Government News
Prime Minister Romeo-Marlin casts vote for 2018...

PHILIPSBURG - On Monday morning Prime Minister Leona Romeo-Marlin and her immediate family headed to the Melford Hazel Sports & Recreational Center and made use of their democratic right to vote. Prime Minister Romeo-Marlin encourages all persons ...

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www.soualiganewsday.com
Deadline for vehicle inspection to be extended to June 30

POND ISLAND - Due to the catastrophic damage caused by Hurricane Irma, the country is still in the recovery phase. Hundreds of vehicles suffered damage.

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www.soualiganewsday.com
Ministry of VSA offers persons post-Irma temp housing

SINT MAARTEN (POND ISLAND) - Last week, the Minister of Public Health, Social Development, and Labor (Ministry VSA), Emil Lee announced the commencement of an Emergency Transitional Housing Program to be managed in by the Dr. J. Foundation....

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www.soualiganewsday.com
Government saves millions of NAF on water purchase....

SINT MAARTEN (POND ISLAND) - " The amount of water that has to be purchased under the current 'take or pay' clauses of the purchasing agreements have resulted in substantial financial losses for the country. "Seven Seas Water was approached to...

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www.soualiganewsday.com
StMaartenNews.com Social News
94% of households need at least 2222 USD a month to...

PHILIPSBURG - Not 75% of the households in Sint Maarten but at least 94% of the households in Sint Maarten cannot survive monthly and live in poverty with an household income of less than 4000 ANG or 2222 USD a month. The percentage of households ...

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stmaartennews.com
StMaartenNews.com Aviation News
Winair: a day of firsts. Successful launch of CN-Express

SINT MAARTEN (SIMPSON BAY) - Winair is proud to announce the launching of several additional services from Princess Juliana International Airport. Firstly the successful launch of the CN-Express, a flight operated by Winair in partnership with...

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www.soualiganewsday.com
T.S.A. announces new screening procedures for carry-on items

SINT MAARTEN/USA - The United States Transportation Security Administration (T.S.A.) said last week Thursday that it has begun implementing new screening procedures for carry-on items at airports across the United States and its territories. This ...

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www.soualiganewsday.com
StMaartenNews.com Judicial News
Additional House searches in "Squid" vote buying case

PHILIPSBURG - "In connection to the ongoing "Squid "investigation, which concerns accusations of "vote buying" during the 2016 Parliamentary Elections, a number of data storage devices were confiscated from a suspect on the Dutch side of the...

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www.soualiganewsday.com
Public Prosecution demands 20 million in 'Troya' case

WILLEMSTAD - The Public Prosecution Service wants to confiscate about 20 million guilders from suspects in a large-scale money laundering and fraud investigation that has been called 'Troya'. This is according to the spokesman of the Public...

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curacaochronicle.com
StMaartenNews.com Dutch Caribbean News
Governor of Aruba visits the Central Bank of Curaçao and SXM

WILLEMSTAD - The Governor of Aruba, Mr. J.A Boekhoudt, visited the Central Bank of Curaçao and Sint Maarten last week. The Governor was received by acting financial-economic director Mr. Dr. Jose Jardim and the members of the Supervisory Board,...

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curacaochronicle.com
First CN-Express flight connecting the BES Islands

THE BOTTOM - The first CN-Express flight from Winair was on Monday, starting from Bonaire to St.Eustatius ending on Saba. "I originally left Curaçao to St. Maarten and had a straight connection from St.Eustatius to Saba. It was a fairly good...

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caribbeannetwork.ntr.nl
Results Airlift Performance 2017

8 Kralendijk (February 26th, 2018) - Tourism Corporation Bonaire (TCB) hereby would like to inform the results for the airlift performance of 2017. Data was retrieved from Bonaire International Airport and analysed. Europe continues to lead the...

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bes-reporter.com
StMaartenNews.com Poll

NA - 27.8%
SDM - 0%
UD - 50%
PPA - 5.6%
SMCP - 11.1%
USP - 5.6%

Poll sponsored by  StMaartenFlowers.com, where you order online, we deliver offline.
Which coalition do you favor?
NA-USP-SMCP (8 seats)
UD-NA (12 seats)
UD-SMCP (8 seats)
UD-USP (9 seats)
UD-USP-SMCP (10 seats)
UD-NA-USP-SMCP (15 seats)
PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT
Ministry of Health advises community to take preventive...

GREAT BAY, Sint Maarten (DCOMM) - The Collective Prevention Services (CPS) department within the Ministry of Public Health, Social Development and Labor, is calling on the community to take preventive measures to prevent contracting...

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721news.com
SZV ASKING EMPLOYERS TO DECLARE AND PAY PREMIUMS ONLINE

PHILIPSBURG - Social & Health Insurances SZV has introduced several online services in 2017, including the Employer Portal where companies can submit their ZV/OV declarations digitally. Employers are obligated by law to submit and pay their ZV/OV ...

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www.soualiganewsday.com
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StMaartenNews.com Online News Stories
Sint Maarten experiences a lower voter-turnout, as expected

PHILIPSBURG - At 8pm on February 26th, 2018, the polls closed on Sint Maarten. The snap elections were seen by many as a 'poor decision' made in the wake of hurricane Irma. Initial numbers counted that 13,932 eligible voters of 22,559 cast a ballot.

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caribbeannetwork.ntr.nl
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Let's Cruise - Eastern, Western, Southern Caribbean...

Lets-Cruise.co is offering cruise vacations on the best and biggest cruise ships in the world with brand name cruises and destinations in the Eastern, Western and Southern Caribbean, Alaska, Europe and the Mediterranean, ...

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www.lets-cruise.co
No celebrations on election day at Sint Maarten

PHILIPSBURG - On Monday Sint Maarteners went to the poll for the third time since 2010. Unlike previous elections, the atmosphere around the polling stations was hushed. "Normally there is loud music and celebrations, now there is nothing", a...

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caribbeannetwork.ntr.nl
Lenovo and Antek IT Solutions & Software donate to MPC...

SINT MAARTEN (SOUTH REWARD) - Last week Lenovo and Antek IT Solutions & Software donated 20 additional Lenovo ThinkPad Chromebooks to Milton Peters College (MPC). Lenovo and Antek had already donated 32 Lenovo ThinkPad Chromebooks in January to...

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www.soualiganewsday.com
U.S. ban on key oil material could choke Venezuelan...

HOUSTON - The outlook for declining oil production in Venezuela may get grimmer if the U.S. bans supply of a key commodity used to help Venezuelan crude flow from oilfields to the coast. Production in the Orinoco oil belt, which accounts for half ...

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curacaochronicle.com
The Blockchain won't save Venezuela

The petro is just a way to hide new international debt behind crypto mumbo-jumbo. I don't know why Venezuela's "petro" cryptocurrency annoys me so much. It is partly that the promise of cryptocurrency was supposed to be trustless...

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curacaochronicle.com
Building a climate-resilient community among matters for ...

PORT-AU-PRINCE - The Caribbean Community's push to build a more climate-resilient community following the devastating 2017 hurricane season is among matters for deliberation by CARICOM Heads of Government at their 29th Inter-Sessional Meeting in...

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curacaochronicle.com
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Weather Forecast: Tuesday to Thursday

DATE ISSUED: Monday, February 26, 2018 @ 18:00 LST (22:00 UTC) VALID UNTIL: Tuesday evening (18:00 LST) February 27, 2018 WEATHER: Tonight: Partly cloudy with a local shower possible. Early morning through Tuesday evening: Partly cloudy to cloudy ...

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www.soualiganewsday.com
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6 reasons why there has been an increase in number of earthquakes

With so many earthquakes in the news recently, it seems that the frequency of big temblors is on the rise. As per a report by The Guardian, scientists have warned there could be a significant growth in the numbers of devastating earthquakes around the world in 2018. Here are seven main reasons that may have led to a rise in seismic activity across the globe.

1. There have been variations in the speed of the Earth's rotation which may have triggered intense seismic activity. Although fluctuations in the rotation are small and may only change the length of a day by one millisecond, they often lead to the release of vast amounts of underground energy, researchers explain. 

2. Natural geomorphological phenomenon isn't the only factor responsible for earthquakes. Activities like mining, nuclear explosions and groundwater extraction has seen an increase in the number of human-induced earthquakes. As per available data, over 728 quakes in past 149 years might have been induced by human activities. 

3. Man-made earthquakes are getting more common due to poor planning in infrastructural activities like fracking for oil, dam-building, pumping gas without re-filling. 

4. Another reason attributed by scientists for increasing earthquakes is the cooling of earth. Scientists claim cooling causes the contraction of the earth's crust, which results into increased volcanic disturbance causing earthquakes.

5. There has been a spurt in big geological processes. These processes are driving the reactive seismic forces that create earthquakes along faults, trenches, and the planet's many subduction zones.

6. A study claims an increase in the number of earthquakes in recent years not because there are substantially more earthquakes, but because there are more seismic instruments and they are able to record more earthquakes. 

Earthquake recorded off Martinique

FORT-DE-FRANCE - The University of the West Indies (UWI) Seismic Research Centre has reported a 3.9 magnitude quake off Martinique that was also felt in Dominica and St Lucia. The tremor occurred last night around 9:25 p.m. It struck about 83 km...

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curacaochronicle.com
StMaartenNews.com Dutch News
Increased competition depresses PostNL's operating profit

PostNL, the post, parcels and e-commerce group based in The Hague, reported operating profit fell to €225m in 2017 from €255m the previous year as 'heavy competition' ripped into revenues and mail volume fell. The company said that competition on ...

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www.dutchnews.nl
DUO to close digital access point for a month

Students will be unable to access details of their funding online for a month while the service provider upgrades its user portal. The Dienst Uitvoering Onderwijs (DUO), which oversees student financing, said the transfer of Mijn DUO would not...

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www.dutchnews.nl
SXM Daily News - 26 Feb 2018
SXM Daily News February 26, 2018

SXM Daily News February 26, 2018

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With the high season upon us and more and more airlines are resuming flights to and from St. Maarten, we are also open to take your flight bookings to and from St. Maarten as well.
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