A by-election was held on 9 July 2010 in Dominica

Dominica

Dominica , officially the Commonwealth of Dominica, is an island nation in the Lesser Antilles region of the Caribbean Sea, south-southeast of Guadeloupe and northwest of Martinique. Its size is and the highest point in the country is Morne Diablotins, which has an elevation of . The Commonwealth...

, to fill two seats in the House of Assembly

House of Assembly of Dominica

The House of Assembly is the legislature of Dominica. It is established by Chapter III of the Constitution of Dominica, and together with the President of Dominica constitutes Dominica's Parliament. The House is unicameral, and consists of twenty-one Representatives, nine Senators, and an...

 that were declared vacant. The contested seats were both won by significant margins by the incumbent candidates, who were members of the opposition

Opposition (parliamentary)

Parliamentary opposition is a form of political opposition to a designated government, particularly in a Westminster-based parliamentary system. Note that this article uses the term government as it is used in Parliamentary systems, i.e. meaning the administration or the cabinet rather than the state...

 United Workers' Party

United Workers' Party (Dominica)

The United Workers' Party is a centrist political party in Dominica. As of the 2009 general election, it is the only opposition party represented in the House of Assembly of Dominica, holding three of the twenty-one seats...

.

Following the results of the 2009 general election

Dominican general election, 2009

A parliamentary election was held in Dominica on 18 December 2009, to elect the 21 Representatives of the House of Assembly. The incumbent Dominica Labour Party increased its majority to 18 of 21 seats, winning a third term.-Key:...

 conducted on 18 December 2009, the Dominica Labour Party

Dominica Labour Party

The Dominica Labour Party is a social-democratic political party in Dominica.-History:Founded in 1955 by Phyllis Shand Allfrey and Emmanuel Christopher Loblack, it is the oldest political party in Dominica. It first contested general elections in 1961, winning seven of the eleven seats. In the next...

 won 18 of the 21 seats in the House of Assembly, with the United Workers' Party in the remaining three. Alleging election irregularities, the UWP members boycotted the Assembly. After two of the three UWP members, Edison James

Edison James

Edison Chenfil James was the prime minister of Dominica from June 14, 1995 to February 3, 2000 as well as the Member of Parliament for the Marigot constituency from 1990. He graduated from the Dominica Grammar School...

 of Marigot

Marigot

The French name Marigot is given to several places in the Caribbean:*Marigot, Dominica, a village in Dominica*Marigot, Saint Martin, the largest settlement on the French side of Saint Martin *Marigot, Saint Barthélemy*Marigot Bay, Saint Lucia...

 and Hector John

Hector John

Hector John is a Dominican politician in the United Workers' Party. He is the current Leader of the Opposition, the youngest ever to hold that position. He was first elected as a Representative to the House of Assembly in 2009....

 of Salisbury, did not attend three consecutive sessions of the Assembly, Speaker of the House Alix Boyd Knights

Alix Boyd Knights

Alix Boyd Knights is a Dominican politician and attorney who is the current Speaker of the House of Assembly.Boyd Knights was first elected Speaker on 17 April 2000 and was re-elected on 27 July 2005. Upon her election to a third term on 4 February 2010, she became the longest serving Speaker in...

 declared their seats vacant, and a by-election

By-election

A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....

 was scheduled to fill the vacancies.

The UWP argued that the Speaker had no legal authority to declare the seats vacant and that the by-elections were unconstitutional. James and John nevertheless ran in the by-election to retain their former seats. The Labour Party fielded the same candidates that ran unsuccessfully in the 2009 general election, Bentley Royer

Bentley Royer

Julien Bentley Royer is a Dominican politician in the Dominica Labour Party and a former schoolteacher. He served briefly as a senator in the Dominica House of Assembly in 2010, and has twice been an unsuccessful candidate for an elected seat....

 in Salisbury and Dayton Baptiste

Dayton Baptiste

Dayton Baptiste is a Dominican politician in the Dominica Labour Party, and a former police officer in Antigua. He served briefly as an appointed senator in the Dominica House of Assembly in 2010, and has twice been an unsuccessful candidate for an elected seat.Baptiste was born in Marigot,...

 in Marigot. Both Royer and Baptiste had been appointed as senators in the interim and resigned these positions to run in the by-election. No candidates from other parties participated in the by-election.

Both James and John won the by-election by even greater margins than in the general election, leaving no change in the distribution of seats in the Assembly. John subsequently became the Leader of the Opposition

Leader of the Opposition (Dominica)

The Leader of the Opposition of the Commonwealth of Dominica is the Member of Parliament who leads the Official Opposition in the House of Assembly of Dominica...

.

Results by constituency

Marigot Marigot, Dominica Marigot is the largest settlement of Saint Andrew Parish in northeastern Dominica. The village has a population of 2,676 people, and is home to a Fisheries Complex as well as the island's main airport. It is the birthplace of local politician Edison James, and cricket umpire Billy...	Candidate	Party	Votes	%
	Edison Chenfil James Edison James Edison Chenfil James was the prime minister of Dominica from June 14, 1995 to February 3, 2000 as well as the Member of Parliament for the Marigot constituency from 1990. He graduated from the Dominica Grammar School...	UWP	669	83.8
	Dayton Baptiste Dayton Baptiste Dayton Baptiste is a Dominican politician in the Dominica Labour Party, and a former police officer in Antigua. He served briefly as an appointed senator in the Dominica House of Assembly in 2010, and has twice been an unsuccessful candidate for an elected seat.Baptiste was born in Marigot,...	DLP	131	16.4
Salisbury	Candidate	Party	Votes	%
	Hector "Spags" John Hector John Hector John is a Dominican politician in the United Workers' Party. He is the current Leader of the Opposition, the youngest ever to hold that position. He was first elected as a Representative to the House of Assembly in 2009....	UWP	772	64.4
	Julien B. "Tolo" Royer Bentley Royer Julien Bentley Royer is a Dominican politician in the Dominica Labour Party and a former schoolteacher. He served briefly as a senator in the Dominica House of Assembly in 2010, and has twice been an unsuccessful candidate for an elected seat....	DLP	415	34.6