Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham has predicted that the Free National Movement (FNM) will win at least 12 of the 15 Family Island seats.
Last week, National Security Minister Tommy Turnquest declared that the party would sweep all the Family Island seats. FNM Chairman Carl Bethel made the same prediction.
But Ingraham, while confident, didn't go that far.
"We are way ahead in the election campaign," he said at a small rally in South Andros on Wednesday. "In fact, of the 15 seats in the Family Islands, I would tell you that we're fairly certain, God willing, we will win at least 12 of them.
"We are on course in some of the others and we'd like you in the south to come with us."
Speaking specifically about that constituency, Ingraham said he thinks the race is between the FNM and independent candidate Whitney Bastian.
However, Ingraham told Androsians not to waste their time voting for Bastian.
"There's a reason why no party wanted to run him," Ingraham said.
"What you want is you want to have an MP who is respected, who you can hold your head up and say you are proud of. You don't want an MP where you have to hold your head down in shame. So don't waste your vote."
In Mangrove Cay, where Ingraham also hosted a small rally on Wednesday, he had a similar message.
"There are two parties in this country. It's either the PLP or the FNM," he said. "Choose which party you will go with. Waste not your vote on anything in between. You are going to want an MP who's going to have some influence. There is no possibility that [Bastian] is going to have some influence."
But Bastian dismissed Ingraham's comments yesterday.
He said the prime minister made similar comments in the run-up to the 2002 general election and his tactics did not work then and will not work now.
He said Ingraham is afraid of him.
Bastian, who won the South Andros seat in 2002, noted that he beat both the PLP and FNM and will do so again.
"I will win by over 300 votes," Bastian said. "I can go down the list of people. I visited every house in the constituency."
The FNM candidate for Mangrove Cay and South Andros is Ron Bosfield. In addition to Bastian, Bosfield is facing off against PLP candidate and current MP Picewell Forbes, and DNA candidate Wayde Forbes.

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