Free National Movement (FNM) Chairman Charles Maynard said he would be very “surprised” if former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham does not follow through on his promise to resign from his North Abaco seat.

Mr. Ingraham told supporters after the FNM lost the May 7 General Election that he would resign from his seat.

He later announced during the party’s convention on May 26 that he would formally resign from the House of Assembly on July 19 – the anniversary of when he was first elected to parliament.

The Journal understands that the former prime minister is reconsidering relinquishing his North Abaco seat – a constituency that he’s represented in parliament for over three decades.

While appearing as a guest on the Love 97 daily talk show Issues of the Day yesterday, Mr. Maynard addressed those claims.

“I accept his decision and his pronouncements as very sincere,” Mr. Maynard said.

“I’ve had a chance to see him since election and he looks to be the most relaxed person you ever want to see on this Earth. He seems to me to be quite comfortable with the idea of retiring and moving on with his life. That’s how he appears to me and so I would be very surprised if he has anything else up his sleeve other than wanting to retire.”

Once Mr. Ingraham officially resigns from his seat on July 19, it will then set the stage for a by-election in North Abaco.

Mr. Maynard said the party is already looking at possible candidates to contest the seat.

Mr. Ingraham retained his seat by defeating the Progressive Liberal Party’s (PLP) candidate Renardo Curry by 379 votes – a number which shocked many as the smallest number of votes.

Admitting that his party will be in for a battle, the chairman is however confident the seat will stay in the FNM’s possession.

“We’ve been on the ground in Abaco; we’ve been in dialogue with any number of the key people in the North Abaco constituency and we believe that the FNM base in Abaco is firm,” he said.

“We know what games are played in any election, especially a by-election with the kind of stakes that this one would have, so we’re very cautious, but we feel confident that it is a race we can win.”

Just after the election, North Abaco resident Teneil Major told The Journal that when she heard the former prime minister’s announcement she was “a little upset at first.”

“After I thought about it long and hard, if people treated me the way they treated him by outright rejecting him, I would’ve done the same thing,” she said at the time.

“I’m ok with it and whoever he decides to bring in the by-election, I will support that person.”

Radio Abaco owner, Silbert Mills agreed.

“I’m not slighted because when I watched the rallies I remember Mr. Ingraham saying in Abaco that if he loses the government he will pack his georgie bundle and go,” he said.

“He said it on nomination day as well so for me it didn’t come as a surprise. There is some degree of disappointment, the way he went out after being our representative for 35 years but these kinds of things you can expect from politics. This is not ring play. Having served myself as the chief councillor for central Abaco I understand the dynamics of it but I will say the resigning of the seat caught me by surprise.”