1997 Nevis Island Assembly election

1997 Nevis Island Assembly election

← 1992 24 February 1997 2001  →
All 5 elected seats in the Nevis Island Assembly
First party Second party   Leader Vance Amory Joseph Parry Party CCM NRP Last election 3 2 Seats won 3 2 Seat change
Premier before election Vance Amory CCM Premier after election Vance Amory CCM

An election was held in Nevis on 24 February 1997 to elect all five of the elected members of the Nevis Island Assembly. The Premier of Nevis, Vance Amory, had called an early election for the assembly in order to seek a mandate for an independence referendum for Nevis, with previous attempts in 1996 being blocked by the opposition Nevis Reformation Party in the assembly. ^[1] The election saw Vance Amory’s party, the Concerned Citizens' Movement (CCM), retain their majority with three of five seats, while the Nevis Reformation Party (NRP) remained in opposition with 2 out of 5 seats. ^{[2] [3] [4]}

Elected members

The following members were elected for the five assembly constituencies:

District	Elected members [5]
	Party	Member
1-Saint Paul	NRP	Victor Jay Martin
2-Saint Johns	CCM	Malcolm Guishard
3-Saint George	CCM	Vance Amory
4-Saint James	CCM	Jean Harris
5-Saint Thomas	NRP	Joseph Parry

Aftermath

The election saw no change to the political makeup of the assembly, and the CCM once again had a majority to form the government. Premier Vance Amory claimed the election victory had given him a mandate to pursue independence, ^[2] and in October 1997 the assembly unanimously approved plans for an independence referendum, which was held in 1998 and was unsuccessful. ^{[6] [7]}

References

1. "Background Notes: St. Kitts and Nevis, April 1997". U.S. Department of State. April 1997. Retrieved 15 September 2025.
2. "Caribbean & Central America - 25 March 1997". Latin News. 25 March 1997. Retrieved 15 September 2025.
3. "Saint Kitts and Nevis" (PDF). Commonwealth. October 2012. Retrieved 15 September 2025.
4. "The Nevis Statistical Digest" (PDF). Department of Statistics. 2020. Retrieved 15 September 2025.
5. "Nevis Island Assembly elections, 1997". Saint Kitts and Nevis Official Gazette. 25 February 1997. Retrieved 15 September 2025– via Digital Library of the Caribbean.
6. Dr Matt Qvortrup (4 January 2010). "Referendums in the United Kingdom - Constitution Committee Contents Memorandum by Dr Matt Qvortrup". UK Parliament. Retrieved 15 September 2025.
7. Midgett, Douglas (1 January 2004). "Pepper and bones: the secessionist impulse in Nevis". New West Indian Guide / Nieuwe West-Indische Gids. Retrieved 15 September 2025– via brill.com.