{{Short description|Antigua and Barbuda politician}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = Jamale Pringle | image = Jamale Pringle.png | caption = Pringle in 2022 | office = Leader of the United Progressive Party | term_start = 24 January 2023 | term_end = | predecessor = Harold Lovell | office1 = Member of Parliament for<br>All Saints East & St. Luke | term_start1 = 26 March 2018 | predecessor1 = Joanne Massiah | office2 = Leader of the Opposition of Antigua and Barbuda | term_start2 = 25 March 2018 | term_end2 = | predecessor2 = Baldwin Spencer | birth_name = Jamale Lars Pringle | birth_place = All Saints, Antigua and Barbuda | party = UPP }} '''Jamale Lars Pringle''' is an Antiguan educator, entrepreneur, and politician who has served as Leader of the Opposition in the Parliament of Antigua and Barbuda since 2018. He has been the political leader of the United Progressive Party since 2023. He is a member of the House of Representatives, representing the constituency of All Saints East & St. Luke, a district to which he was first elected in 2018 and re-elected in 2023.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2023-01-19 |title=Declaration of Results 2023 General Elections from ABEC |url=https://antiguanewsroom.com/declaration-of-results-2023-general-elections-from-abec/ |access-date=2026-04-08 |website=Antigua News Room |language=en-US}}</ref>
== Biography == Born in All Saints, Pringle completed his secondary education at All Saints Secondary School and his tertiary studies at the Department of Teacher Education at Antigua State College. Pringle taught for many years at numerous secondary schools in Antigua. He left the teaching profession to enter the private sector, becoming a business partner in an event management firm.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Caribbean Elections Biography {{!}} Jamale Pringle |url=http://caribbeanelections.com/knowledge/biography/bios/pringle_jamale.asp |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210508190921/http://caribbeanelections.com/knowledge/biography/bios/pringle_jamale.asp |archive-date=2021-05-08 |access-date=2026-04-08 |website=caribbeanelections.com}}</ref>
A member of the United Progressive Party (UPP), Pringle ran as a candidate for the All Saints East & St. Luke seat—his home constituency and a party stronghold<ref name=":1" />— in the 2018 general election, following the expulsion of incumbent MP Joanne Massiah amidst a dispute with UPP leader Harold Lovell. The election proved to be a resounding national defeat for the UPP, which garnered only 37.09% of the vote and suffered its worst-ever result against the Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party (ABLP). Against this backdrop, Pringle prevailed by a narrow margin of just 10 votes over Osbert Frederick (of the ABLP) and was the only UPP candidate to be elected; meanwhile, the ABLP won the other fifteen seats in Antigua, while the Barbuda People's Movement—an ally of the UPP—won the single seat in Barbuda. The tight margin—and the fact that the total number of rejected ballots (12) exceeded Pringle's lead—prompted Frederick to demand a recount, which ultimately confirmed the UPP's victory. Since Lovell (the party leader) had failed to secure a seat in Parliament, and in the absence of any other UPP parliamentarians, Pringle was sworn in as Leader of the Opposition on 25 March, succeeding former Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer. Trevor Walker declined to challenge him for the position.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-03-25 |title=Walker says he wasn't approached to be Opposition Leader |url=https://antiguanewsroom.com/walker-says-he-wasnt-approach-to-be-opposition-leader/ |access-date=2026-04-08 |website=Antigua News Room |language=en-US}}</ref>
From his parliamentary seat, Pringle led the opposition against Gaston Browne's Labour government with an agenda focused on youth and business development. His status as the sole opposition member in Antigua—a situation unprecedented since the founding of the UPP—led to him being nicknamed "Single Pringle."<ref>{{Cite web |title=UPP officially names final five election candidates |url=https://antiguaobserver.com/upp-officially-names-final-five-election-candidates/ |access-date=2026-04-08 |website=Antigua Observer Newspaper |language=en-GB}}</ref> Pringle rose through the ranks of the UPP and was appointed the party's Deputy Political Leader and Lovell's direct successor at the subsequent Biennial Convention. Ahead of the 2023 elections, Pringle was once again nominated as a candidate for re-election; he secured a landslide victory with 62.08% of the vote—the party's strongest performance of the day.<ref name=":0" /> Although the UPP staged a notable recovery, securing 45.22% of the vote and six seats, it once again lost the election; furthermore, Lovell failed for the third time to return to Parliament, prompting his resignation as party leader. Consequently, Pringle was re-elected as Leader of the Opposition in Parliament and, simultaneously, assumed formal leadership of the UPP.<ref>{{Cite web |title=‘No regrets’—Lovell holds head up high after exit from the political stage |url=https://antiguaobserver.com/no-regrets-lovell-holds-head-up-high-after-exit-from-the-political-stage/ |access-date=2026-04-08 |website=Antigua Observer Newspaper |language=en-GB}}</ref>
== See also == * 16th Parliament of Antigua and Barbuda
== References == {{Reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pringle, Jamale}} Category:Living people Category:Year of birth missing (living people) Category:Place of birth missing (living people) Category:United Progressive Party politicians Category:Leaders of the opposition Category:Members of the House of Representatives (Antigua and Barbuda) Category:Members of the 16th legislature of Antigua and Barbuda Category:Members of the 15th legislature of Antigua and Barbuda Category:Members of the 17th legislature of Antigua and Barbuda
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