The new coalition government was announced on May 10th, with Eugene Rhuggenaath of the Partido Antiá Restrukturá (PAR) becoming prime minister, following elections on April 28th. The PAR won the largest share of the vote, at 23.3% of the total, which was enough to give it six seats out of 21 in the Staten (the legislature). The Movementu Antia Nobo (MAN) of the former prime minister, Hensley Koeiman (2016-17), came joint second, securing five seats, an identical tally to that of the Movementu Futuro Kòrsou (MFK), led by a former prime minister, Gerrit Schotte (2010-12). The government will have a slim majority of just 12 seats-just one more than the minimum needed. A fragmented political environment will provide little guarantee of stability, and although the new coalition has a stronger mandate than its predecessor (which collapsed when a party holding just two seats withdrew), the government is at risk of instability should frictions emerge between the PAR and MAN.

The new government will find it difficult to avoid a continuation of the political volatility that has affected the island in recent years. The political establishment has been rocked by major corruption allegations over the past year, most recently involving the now-suspended president of the Centrale Bank van Curaçao en Sint Maarten (CBCS, the Curaçao and Sint Maarten joint central bank), Emsley Tromp. Early in 2016 Mr Schotte, of the opposition MFK, was convicted on bribery charges and sentenced to three years in jail and a five-year ban from public office. Despite this, Mr Schotte was allowed to run in the 2016 election and the MFK came close to winning, with 16% of the vote and four seats in the Staten. It did even better in 2017, with 19.9% of the vote and an extra seat. It is still unclear whether the conviction will be upheld but, in the meantime, Mr Schotte will be the strongest voice among the opposition to the new coalition.

Challenges facing the new government include the need to address weak growth and implement unpopular policies, such as changes to public pension entitlements and to the education and healthcare systems, along with tax reform; these could easily be derailed by special interest groups. The business environment will continue to be hampered by political and policy uncertainty, with further corruption scandals also possible.