Politics of Trinidad and Tobago

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Trinidad and Tobago
This article is part of the series: Politics and government of Trinidad and Tobago

President (List) George Maxwell Richards Prime Minister Patrick Manning Parliament Senate House of Representatives Elections: 2007 Political parties Corporations Foreign relations
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Politics of Trinidad and Tobago takes place in a framework of a unitary state, with a parliamentary democracy modelled on that of the UK, from which it gained independence in 1962. Under the 1976 republican Constitution, the British monarch was replaced as head of state by a President chosen by an electoral college composed of the members of the bicameral Parliament, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives.

The country has remained a member of the Commonwealth, and has retained the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London as its highest court of appeal.

The general direction and control of the government rests with the Cabinet, led by a Prime Minister. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are answerable (at least in theory) to the House of Representatives. The 36 members of the House are elected to terms of at least five years. Elections may be called earlier by the president at the request of the prime minister or after a vote of no confidence in the House of Representatives. In 1976, the voting age was reduced from 21 to 18. The Senate's 31 members are appointed by the President: 16 on the advice of the prime minister, six on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and nine independents selected by the President from among outstanding members of the community. Local government is through nine Regional Corporations and five municipalities. Tobago was given a measure of self-government in 1980 and is governed by the Tobago House of Assembly. In 1996, Parliament passed legislation which gave Tobago greater self-government. In 2005 Parliament approved a proposal by the independent Elections and Boundaries Commission to increase the number of seats in the House of Representatives from 36 to 41.

Party politics have generally run along ethnic lines, with most Afro-Trinidadians supporting the People's National Movement (PNM) and most Indo-Trinidadians supporting various Indian-majority parties, such as the United National Congress (UNC) or its predecessors. Most political parties, however, have sought to broaden their purview.

In recent months a new political presence has emerged called Congress of The People (COP). The majority of this membership was formed from defunked UNC members and UNC members that has decided to leave the UNC to form the new COP party.

1 Executive branch
2 Legislative branch
3 Political parties and elections
4 Judicial branch
5 Administrative divisions
6 Political pressure groups and leaders
7 International organization participation
8 External links

[edit] Executive branch

Main office holders
Office	Name	Party	Since
President	George Maxwell Richards		2003
Prime Minister	Patrick Manning		December 2001

The President is elected by an electoral college, which consists of the members of the Senate and House of Representatives, for a five-year term. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President from among the members of Parliament; following legislative elections, the person with the most support among the elected members of the House of Representatives is usually appointed Prime Minister. The cabinet appointed from among the Members of Parliament which constitutes elected Members of the House of Representatives and appointed Members of the Senate
Election Results: George Maxwell Richards elected president;

[edit] Legislative branch

The Parliament of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago has two chambers. The House of Representatives has 36 members (to be increased to 41 seats after the next election), elected for a five year term in single-seat constituencies. The Senate has 31 members: 16 Government Senators appointed on the advice of the Prime Minister, sixOpposition Senators appointed on the advice of the Leader of the Opposition and nine Independent Senators appointed by the President to represent other sectors of civil society. The president is elected for a five year term by an electoral college consisting of the members of both houses of Parliament. Other elected bodies include the Local Government bodies in Trinidad (two cities, three boroughs, eight Regional Corporations) and the Tobago House of Assembly which handles local government in Tobago.

[edit] Political parties and elections

For other political parties see List of political parties in Trinidad and Tobago. An overview on elections and election results is included in Elections in Trinidad and Tobago.

[discuss] – [edit]
**Summary of the 7 October 2002 House of Representatives of Trinidad and Tobago election results**
Parties	%	Seats
People's National Movement	50.7	20
United National Congress	46.5	16
National Alliance for Reconstruction	1.1	-
Citizens' Alliance	1.0	-
Total (turnout 68%)		36
Source: Trinidad Express and Elections and Boundaries Commission

note: Tobago has a unicameral House of Assembly, with 15 members (12 elected) serving four-year terms; in the 2005 elections the PNM won.

In recent months (January - September 2006) there has been, what seems to be, a split in the UNC which currently forms the majority of the opposition. This split has come about because of apparent differences in political style between the UNC and the recently appointed (then defunct) leader of the UNC, Winston Dookeran.

This has lead Mr Dookeran to form his own political Party called Congress of the People (C.O.P.).

Consequently, over the last few months there has been movement of political members from the UNC to the COP.

There has been mixed reactions as to the popularity and eventual effectiveness of the COP in making the next opposition or even the next Government.

[edit] Judicial branch

The country's highest court is the Court of Appeal, whose chief justice is appointed by the president after consultation with the Prime Minister and Leader of the Opposition. Final appeal on some matters is decided by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London. Trinidad and Tobago was chosen by its Caribbean neighbors (Caricom) to be the headquarters site of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) which was supposed to replace the Privy Council in the fall of 2003. However, the government has been unable to pass legislation to effect this change.