PNC/R Leader Aubrey Norton has said the party will hold presidential primaries to determine its next presidential candidate, although he outlined no timetable or arrangements for the process.
Norton made the announcement while paying tribute to former party leader Robert Corbin at his funeral, linking the commitment to earlier discussions within the party about how its presidential candidate should be selected.
“I wish to state that the party will have presidential primaries to determine the next presidential candidate of our party,” Norton said.
He recalled an earlier effort by members to secure primaries and discussions involving Corbin that led to agreement on the selection process.
The announcement came as Norton reflected on Corbin’s political leadership, including his commitment to coalition politics and constructive engagement across party lines.
Norton credited the former Opposition Leader with helping to develop generations of young political activists through his work in the party’s youth movement.
He said Corbin’s influence on young people during the 1960s and 1970s earned him the name “Chief”, and described his service to the party as marked by discipline, loyalty and resilience.
Corbin’s willingness to engage political opponents, Norton said, sought to foster cooperation in addressing the country’s problems.
Norton did not say who would be eligible to vote in the proposed primaries, how candidates would qualify or when the party would establish the rules governing the process.
The selection of a presidential candidate was a contentious issue ahead of the 2025 elections. Stabroek News reported that the PNC/R’s 22nd Biennial Congress in 2024 returned Norton as leader and passed a motion naming him the party’s presidential candidate, while empowering him to consider alternative arrangements. His insistence on heading a coalition ticket subsequently became a sticking point in negotiations with the Alliance For Change, which opposed his candidacy and advocated agreement on a consensus candidate. The PNC/R-led APNU went on to suffer the party’s worst electoral defeat, losing its position as the main parliamentary opposition to We Invest in Nationhood (WIN).
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