Since the achievement of adult suffrage in 1944, Jamaican democracy has remained resilient. Fifteen general elections have been held; the results have been accepted by the contending parties and the democratic process has survived. Within the wider Latin American and Caribbean region, Jamaica has been a stable, functioning democracy, but it has faced a number of significant challenges. In this book, Amanda Sives examines one of those key difficulties: the relationship between politics and violence in the former British colony involving supporters of the two main rival political parties, the Jamaican Labour Party and the People s National Party. Unlike other countries within the region, it has occurred within the confines of the democratic process and sought to influence the electoral outcome rather than overthrow the state. Tracing the rise and decline of partisan political violence, through an examination of elections since 1944, Sives argues it cannot be understood outside of this historical framework............