16th legislature of Antigua and Barbuda | |||||
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Overview | |||||
Legislative body | Parliament of Antigua and Barbuda | ||||
Meeting place | St. John's | ||||
Term | 18 January 2023 – TBD | ||||
Election | 2023 Antiguan general election | ||||
Government | Labour | ||||
Opposition | UPP, BPM | ||||
Crown of Antigua and Barbuda | |||||
Monarch | Charles III | ||||
Governor-General | Sir Rodney Williams | ||||
Senate | |||||
President | Alincia Williams-Grant | ||||
Deputy President | Osbert Richard Frederick | ||||
House of Representatives | |||||
Speaker | Sir Gerald Watt | ||||
Deputy Speaker | Robin Yearwood |
The 16th legislature of Antigua and Barbuda is the current parliament, being elected in the 2023 Antiguan general election on 18 January 2023.
Position [1] | Senator |
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President of the Senate | Senator the Hon. Alincia Williams-Grant |
Deputy President of the Senate | Senator the Hon. Osbert Richard Frederick |
Leader of Government Business | Senator the Hon. Samantha Marshall |
Deputy Leader of Government Business | Senator the Hon. Cheryl Mary Clare Hurst |
Government Senator | Senator the Hon. Shenella Mary Shadida Govia |
Government Senator | Senator the Hon. Clement Marley Mandela Antonio |
Government Senator | Senator the Hon. Philip Scholl |
Government Senator | Senator the Hon. Colin O'Neil Browne |
Government Senator | Vacant (since 29 September 2023) |
Government Senator (Barbuda representative) | Senator the Hon. Knacyntar Nedd Charles |
Government Senator | Senator the Hon. Rawdon Antonio Nairobi Turner |
Opposition Senator | Senator the Hon. Shawn Nicholas [2] |
Opposition Senator | Senator the Hon. Johnathan Joseph [2] |
Opposition Senator | Senator the Hon. Alex Browne [2] |
Opposition Senator | Senator the Hon. David Massiah [2] |
Independent Senator (Governor General’s Representative) | Senator the Hon. Kiz Johnson [3] |
Barbuda Senator (Barbuda Council) | Senator the Hon. Fabian Jones [4] |
The Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party (ABLP) is a political party in Antigua and Barbuda. The current leader of the party is Gaston Browne, who serves as the Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda. The party had previously been led by Lester Bird, who was chairman of the party since 1971, and was Prime Minister and political leader in 1994.
The Barbuda People's Movement is a centre-left Barbudan nationalist political party in Antigua and Barbuda active only on the island of Barbuda. The party's symbol is the European fallow deer, national animal of Barbuda. The party seeks the secession of Barbuda from Antigua and Barbuda.
The House of Representatives of Antigua and Barbuda is the lower chamber of the country's bicameral parliament. Each of the constituencies created in accordance with section 62 of the Constitution shall elect one representative to the House in a direct election in accordance with the procedures specified by or pursuant to any law, subject to the rules of the Constitution. Unless he is prohibited by law from registration as a voter for the purpose of electing a member of the House, every Commonwealth citizen who is eighteen years of age or older and who meets the requirements relating to residence or domicile in Antigua and Barbuda as prescribed by Parliament is entitled to be registered as such a voter in accordance with the provisions of any law in that regard, and no other person may be registered. Every person who is registered to vote in any constituency shall, unless prohibited from doing so by any law, be entitled to vote in accordance with the provisions of any law in that regard in any election of members of the House in that constituency. Voting is free and must be done by secret ballot in accordance with any rules that Parliament may impose during House member elections.
The Senate is the Upper House of Parliament of Antigua and Barbuda. It consists of 17 members appointed by the Governor General. Ten members are appointed on the advice of the Prime Minister, four on the advice of the Leader of the Opposition, one on the advice of the Barbuda Council, one resident of Barbuda on the advice of the Prime Minister, and one at the Governor General's discretion. Subject to the provisions of Section 30 of the Constitution, any person who at the time of his appointment: is a citizen; is twenty-one years of age or older; has lived in Antigua and Barbuda for the twelve months immediately prior to the date of his appointment; and is able to speak and, unless disabled by blindness or another physical condition, to read the English language with enough proficiency to allow him to take an active part in the proceedings.
The Government of Antigua and Barbuda (GOAB), is a unitary constitutional monarchy, where the Monarch of Antigua and Barbuda serves as the head of state, represented by the Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda, and the Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda serves as the head of government.
Sir Steadroy "Cutie" Olivero Benjamin, KGCN, is an Antiguan lawyer and politician, who is the current minister of Justice and Attorney General of Antigua and Barbuda. He previously served as Leader of the Opposition in the Parliament of Antigua and Barbuda.
Gaston Alfonso Browne is an Antiguan politician serving as the prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda and leader of the Labour Party since 2014. Before entering politics, he was a banker and businessman.
Sir Rodney Errey Lawrence Williams, is the current and 4th Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda.
Tevaughn Harriette is an Antigua and Barbuda international footballer who plays as a striker.
Sir Ronald Michael Sanders is an Antiguan Barbudan diplomat, academic, former broadcast-journalist, and the current Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the United States and to the Organization of American States (OAS) since 2015. He holds the unique distinction of being the first person, since the OAS enlarged its membership in 1962, to serve as Chairman of the Permanent Council of the OAS for an unprecedented three terms. He completed his highly successful third term on December 31, 2023, having played a widely recognized role in guiding the work of the Permanent Council in the peaceful transition of government in Guatemala on 14 January 2024.
General elections were held in Antigua and Barbuda on 21 March 2018 to elect members to House of Representatives of the 15th Antigua and Barbuda Parliament. Each of the 17 constituencies elected one Member of Parliament (MP).
Maria Vanessa Bird-Browne is a politician in Antigua and Barbuda. She was elected as a member of the House of Representatives for St. John's Rural East in the Parliament of Antigua and Barbuda in 2018, becoming the youngest lawmaker in the country and the youngest female member of parliament across the Commonwealth at the time. She is the country's minister for housing, lands, and urban renewal.
General elections were held in Saint Lucia on 26 July 2021, having been constitutionally required by 12 October 2021. Voters elected all 17 members of the House of Assembly. The result was a victory for the opposition Saint Lucia Labour Party, which won 13 of the 17 seats in the House, while the ruling United Workers Party lost nine of its eleven seats, its worst result since 1997. It was the fourth consecutive election in which the incumbent government was defeated.
Trevor Myke Walker is a Barbudan politician, current member of parliament for Barbuda, and former Cabinet Minister under the Baldwin Spencer administration. He is a member of the Barbuda People's Movement, a party that seeks the independence of Barbuda from Antigua and Barbuda.
The Leader of the Opposition, officially the Leader of His Majesty's Opposition, is the leader of the largest political party in the House of Representatives of Antigua and Barbuda that is not in government. The Leader of the Opposition is appointed by the Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda.
General elections were held in Antigua and Barbuda on 18 January 2023 to elect members of the House of Representatives. The Labour Party (ABLP) has held an absolute majority of 15 seats in the House of Representatives after the 2018 general election, with Gaston Browne remaining as prime minister. Browne initiated a constitutional referendum after the 2018 election, which was rejected by voters, and following the death of Elizabeth II in 2022, he announced his intention to organise a referendum for the transition of Antigua and Barbuda to a republican system. Besides ABLP, the United Progressive Party (UPP), Democratic National Alliance, Barbuda People's Movement (BPM), and three independent politicians filed candidacies for the 2023 general election.
Osbert Richard Frederick is an Antiguan and Barbudan politician. He was appointed senator by Prime Minister Gaston Browne. After his appointment, he was elected the Deputy senate president in the Upper House of Parliament in Antigua and Barbuda.
Gail Christian is an Antiguan and Barbudan politician and senator. She is a senator of the Upper House of Parliament in Antigua and Barbuda. She was appointed senator by Prime Minister Gaston Browne.
On October 24, 2023, a by-election was conducted in the Antiguan seat of St. Mary's South in response to the resignation of Kelvin Simon, the sitting UPP member of parliament, due to challenges to his candidacy. It was Antigua and Barbuda's second election since Prime Minister Gaston Browne emerged victorious in the country's general election in 2023 with a narrow win.
Jamale L. Pringle is an Antiguan politician who is leader of the United Progressive Party and leader of the opposition. He is the MP for All Saints East & St. Luke.