# 1983 Netherlands Antilles island council elections

Island council elections were held in the Netherlands Antilles on 29 April (ABC islands) and 6 May 1983 (SSS islands) to elect the members of the island councils of its six island territories. The election was won by the People's Electoral Movement (13 seats) in Aruba, the Bonaire Democratic Party (5 seats) in Bonaire, the New Antilles Movement (8 seats) in Curaçao, the Windward Islands People's Movement (4 seats) in Saba, the Democratic Party Statia (3 seats) in Sint Eustatius, and the Democratic Party (5 seats) in Sint Maarten.

## Shooting of Betico Croes

During the campaign in Aruba, an incident occurred at an illegally organized car parade of the People's Electoral Movement (MEP) in Santa Cruz on 24 April 1983. The rally was to be held on the same day as the car parade of the Aruban People's Party (AVP), but unlike the AVP, the MEP did not have permission from the local police. When MEP leader Betico Croes began mobilizing 500 cars for the parade, a warning shot was fired by a police officer. A second shot hit Croes in the abdomen.
Croes was taken to the Dr. Horacio E. Oduber Hospital in Oranjestad, where his spleen was removed and the bleeding was stopped. Directly after the shooting, riots occurred, in response to which Lieutenant Governor Pedro Bislip ordered to close all bars and prohibit the sale of alcohol on the island until further notice. Five days later, the MEP won the election with 57.9% of the popular vote.

## Results
### Aruba

| Party | Party | Votes | % | Seats | +/– |
| | People's Electoral Movement | 20,798 | 57.94 | 13 | +1 |
| | Aruban People's Party | 8,102 | 22.57 | 5 | +1 |
| | Aruban Patriotic Party | 5,354 | 14.91 | 3 | 0 |
| | Aruban Democratic Party | 1,644 | 4.58 | 0 | New |
| Total | Total | 35,898 | 100.00 | 21 | 0 |
| Source: CBS ||||||

### Bonaire

| Party | Party | Votes | % | Seats | +/– |
| | Bonaire Democratic Party | 2,371 | 47.72 | 5 | +1 |
| | Bonaire Patriotic Union | 2,184 | 43.95 | 4 | −1 |
| | United Bonaire Progressive Party | 246 | 4.95 | 0 | 0 |
| | New Action Party | 168 | 3.38 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 4,969 | 100.00 | 9 | – |
| Source: CBS ||||||

### Curaçao

| Party | Party | Votes | % | Seats | +/– |
| | New Antilles Movement | 23,391 | 33.84 | 8 | +2 |
| | National People's Party | 23,249 | 33.63 | 7 | +2 |
| | Democratic Party | 14,799 | 21.41 | 5 | –1 |
| | Workers' Liberation Front | 4,503 | 6.51 | 1 | 0 |
| | Social Democratic Party | 1,744 | 2.52 | 0 | −3 |
| | META | 1,444 | 2.09 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 69,130 | 100.00 | 21 | – |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 104,328 | – | | |
| Source: CBS ||||||

### Saba

The result was a victory for the Windward Islands People's Movement, which won four of the five seats in the Island Council of Saba.
| Party | Party | Votes | % | Seats | +/– |
| | Windward Islands People's Movement | 470 | 77.43 | 4 | –1 |
| | Saba United Party | 137 | 22.57 | 1 | New |
| Total | Total | 607 | 100.00 | 5 | 0 |
| Source: Johnson ||||||

### Sint Eustatius

| Party | Party | Seats | +/– |
| | Democratic Party | 3 | +1 |
| | Windward Islands People's Movement | 2 | −1 |
| Total | Total | 5 | 0 |
| Source: Algemeen Dagblad ||||

### Sint Maarten

The Island Council seats increased from five to seven. The result was a victory for the Democratic Party, which won five of the seven Island Council seats.
| Party | Party | Votes | % | Seats | +/– |
| | Democratic Party | 3,342 | 66.85 | 5 | +2 |
| | Sint Maarten Patriotic Movement | 1,443 | 28.87 | 2 | 0 |
| | Partido Pro Penshonado | 191 | 3.82 | 0 | New |
| | New Electoral Movement of Antilles | 23 | 0.46 | 0 | New |
| Total | Total | 4,999 | 100.00 | 7 | +2 |
| Source: Lynch & Lynch ||||||