Race relations consultant Rolfe Commissiong has claimed it is up to the white community to break the polarisation of Bermuda.

In the aftermath of the Progressive Labour Party's victory at one of the most bitterly contested General Elections in living memory, Mr. Commissiong bemoaned the lack of whites voting for the party he supports.

Asked if race had played a part in the election, Mr. Commissiong said: "As in every election."

He pointed to figures showing white people consistently vote for the United Bermuda Party and said: "People talk about racial polarisation of politics. The onus has to be on the white community."

Asked if the PLP needed to do more to make itself appealing to whites, he replied: "I think that's very condescending to the PLP. That rhetoric needs to stop. We live in a democracy. If the white community feels they have been marginalised, they only need to look in the mirror.

"How can you have ten percent of black Bermudians voting for a party, and you have never seen the white community do that to any degree?

"The white community need to do an assessment about where they are in Bermuda. They need to be part of the political process."