(Pictures: Some campaign posters, Grace & Peter)
I was rinsing some dishes in the sink when sounds of loud honking and shouting slowly got closer and closer to our house. They were coming down the main road and soon they were right at the bottom of our street. At first I was worried. Tom had just left the house—is this a demonstration? Could it turn violent? But before I called Tom’s cell phone to check on him, I remembered: elections are supposed to be coming soon. I left my cleaning and looked down the street to see excited people chanting something from packed cars and streaming orange cloth. The orange-party supporters came in waves for the next hour or so. Campaigning had begun.
The next day there were posters up all over the city. We are on the brink of two major elections here on the island—island governors and the country president. These men will hold great power in this small country, but they have only been campaigning for a couple weeks. The election for governors will be this Sunday.
Listening to BBC radio reminds us that the States have been in the full pre-election swing. No doubt you are seeing numerous TV ads, interviews and maybe even debates. I’m sure each American candidate has a website to which you can go in order to understand their stance on the issues.
It is strange to see the same campaign spirit from around the world, played out on the small stage of our islands. The most important campaign decision here seems to be what your poster looks like. Everyone has a picture of the candidate with their name in big letters—but how do they hold their hands and should they wear traditional or modern dress? There are battles to get posters in the best areas, with posters being taken down and competing streamers hanging side by side.
On the island it is hard to know what the issues are. No one seems worried about laws or policies. It seems to be all about money. Who can get the country more money? Who will buy my vote with money for my area? Our friends who have shared their opinion with us, seem to think all the candidates are all lying-thieves, so it doesn’t matter who you vote for. Others say that you just have to vote for the person that promises your neighborhood money or who is from the same region as you. 
There is one area in the capital that has horrible roads—they flood and are in horrible disrepair. The taxi drivers went on strike because of them. Someone explained to me as our car waded through the water and potholes of that neighborhood, “They didn’t vote for the current president.” Apparently not getting money to fix their roads fixed was their punishment. Likewise neighborhoods and villages await the rewards of having “their man” win the election—new roads, maybe a new school, better water or electricity. It pays to be on the winning side.
So we’ll soon see who the winners are this time around.
PRAYERS ANSWERED
We watched the four boys so Chris & Beka and others could hike the volcano (a two-day hike). The boys were very well-behaved and the hikers had wonderful weather and a great time! Tom had a meeting to start a second-year of the “teaching English teachers” group and many new teachers came, so it looks like he will be able to go through the curriculum he developed a second time. Megan’s back is doing much better. Peter & Grace are healthy and happy. Peter is now 7 months old and Grace will be 2 ½ this week!
PRAYERS REQUESTED
Pray that with the coming elections that the elected officials would be good men that respect basic freedoms and truly work to improve this country. Gabe (4 yrs) has been sick with a mild case of malaria , pray that he fully recovers soon. Tom is working on details for a small project to help a school, pray that the pieces would come together well. Chris (our team leader) is traveling to Kenya for a leadership conference (4th-13th). The leaders for our region will be discussing some details of our future, pray for those discussions. Pray also for a good conference and for the team and Beka & the boys while he is gone.
