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Bahamas Democratic Movement | |
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| Abbreviation | BDM |
| Leader | Cassius Stuart |
| Founded | 1998 (Original) 6 July 2020 (Revived) |
| Dissolved | 13 April 2011 (Original) |
| Ideology | Liberalism Populism |
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 Caribbeanportal |
The Bahamas Democratic Movement (BDM) is a liberal-populist political party in the Bahamas representing the interests of young people.
The party was formed in late 1998 in Nassau, Bahamas and was officially launched in February 2000. The party's founders included: Cassius Stuart, Howard R. Johnson, Dario Roberts, George Carey and a number of then-students of the College of the Bahamas. The party was formed due to a shared belief held by the founding group that many Caribbean governments, specifically successive Bahamian governments, failed to incorporate young persons (under the age of 30) in the decision-making processes of government at any level. This particular view stemmed from the fact that, at the time, over 60% of the country's population was under the age of 30 years. Stuart and his followers believed that it was incumbent upon the government to have young persons play a more significant role in the governance of the country as opposed to merely "using them for their votes" in the period leading up to general elections. Immediately following victory at the polls, however, Stuart and his followers contended that young persons were given no official governmental roles with any real political power. The current leader of the BDM is Cassius Stuart. Omar Smith serves as Deputy Leader of the party.
Within a year of the party's formation, Johnson, Carey, Roberts and others left the BDM, citing methodological differences with Stuart as the primary reason for their departure. Soon after their departure, Johnson, Carey, Roberts and others joined the Coalition for Democratic Reform (CDR), a different party.
On 3 December 2001, Stuart and Smith dominated the national news when they intentionally disrupted the Sitting of the House of Assembly. Both men charged from the Public Gallery onto the House floor and handcuffed themselves to the Mace –a symbol of the House Speaker's authority –in protest against the "unfair gerrymandering of the constituency boundaries by the FNM Administration". The Mace was unable to be separated from the men and, thus, the Sitting had to be suspended. The pair were jailed for almost two days but no charges were brought against them. Ironically, the BDM's Mace Incident was strikingly similar to an event of important political significance in Bahamian history known as Black Tuesday. On that particular day, 15 April 1965, then-Opposition Leader and former Prime Minister, Sir Lynden Pindling threw the Mace out of the House of Assembly window in protest against the unfair gerrymandering of constituency boundaries of the then United Bahamian Party (UBP) government.
The BDM contested 12 of the 40 parliamentary seats in the general elections of 2002, winning no seats and less than 1% of the total votes cast. Despite its poor performance at the polls, the BDM enjoys widespread admiration[ citation needed ] as well as criticism[ citation needed ] from the Bahamian public. Their support comes mainly from individuals under the age of 30. To date, the BDM has been unable to effectively mobilize and organize the under 30 group to show up at the polls and support the party. Critics of the BDM claim that Stuart and Smith often engage in radical political action to 'grandstand' and claim that this behavior ultimately precludes the organization from fading into obscurity.[ citation needed ]
On 24 March 2005, Stuart and Smith again dominated the national news when they briefly prevented Prime Minister Perry Christie from accessing the House of Assembly. It was a dramatic end to a protest taking place in the immediate vicinity of the Parliament against the government's move to bring a resolution to Parliament, giving a government Member of Parliament (MP) more time to appeal a bankruptcy order against them. The BDM claimed that the government would be abusing its constitutional authority in passing the resolution. This argument had its basis on a requirement, in the Constitution of The Bahamas, that any MP who is declared bankrupt by the Courts must vacate his or her seat in the Parliament. Stuart and Smith were again arrested in the wake of the incident but the pair has yet to be charged before the Bahamian courts.
On 13 April 2011, the party dissolved its constitution to join forces with the then-governing Free National Movement led by Rt. Hon Hubert Ingraham. Stuart contested the Bamboo town Seat for the Free National Movement but fell short by 340 votes of a win over Renward Wells. Six months after joining the Free National Movement, Stuart left the party because he didn't believe in the new leadership of the party under Hubert Minnis.
On 6 July 2020, after nine years outside of the political arena, Cassius Stuart expressed the need for the party to return to the political scene. Much like before, the party claims that there is no clear direction for the country on the part of the government and has been critical of Hubert Minnis, claiming he shows weak national leadership.
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The earliest arrival of people in the islands now known as The Bahamas was in the first millennium AD. The first inhabitants of the islands were the Lucayans, an Arawakan-speaking Taino people, who arrived between about 500 and 800 AD from other islands of the Caribbean.
The Bahamas is a parliamentary constitutional monarchy headed by King Charles III in his role as King of the Bahamas. The politics of the Bahamas takes place within a framework of parliamentary democracy, with a Prime Minister as the Head of Government. The Bahamas is an Independent Country and a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. As a former British colony, its political and legal traditions closely follow those of the United Kingdom. King Charles III is the head of state, but executive power is exercised by the cabinet. Legislative power is vested in the two chambers of parliament. The Judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature and jurisprudence is based on English common law. The multi-party system is dominated by the Progressive Liberal Party and the Free National Movement. The constitution protects freedom of speech, press, worship, movement, and association.
Sir Lynden Oscar Pindling, NH, KCMG, PC, JP was a Bahamian politician who is regarded as the "Father of the Nation" of the Bahamas, having led it to majority rule on 10 January 1967 and to independence on 10 July 1973. He served as the first black premier of the Colony of the Bahama Islands from 1967 to 1969 and as Prime Minister of the Bahamas from 1969 to 1992. He was leader of the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) from 1956 to 1997 when he resigned from public life under scandal.
Perry Gladstone Christie PC, MP is a Bahamian former politician who served as Prime Minister of the Bahamas from 2002 to 2007 and from 2012 to 2017. He is the second longest-serving Bahamian elected parliamentarian, representing the Centreville constituency from 1977 to 2017. He is also a former athlete. His Progressive Liberal Party is the oldest Bahamian political party, holding solid majorities in the Bahamian Parliament several times in its long history.
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Hubert Alexander Ingraham, PC is a Bahamian politician who was Prime Minister of the Bahamas from August 1992 to May 2002 and again from May 2007 to May 2012. He is a member of the Free National Movement Party (FNM). Prior to the 2012 election, he was the FNM's Party Leader and was the Member of Parliament for the North Abaco constituency. He served as Leader of the Opposition in the House of Assembly from 2005 to 2007.
Elections in The Bahamas take place in the framework of a parliamentary democracy. Since independence, voter turnout has been generally high in national elections, with a low of 87.9% in 1987 and a high of 98.5% in 1997. The current Prime Minister is The Hon. Philip Davis.
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General elections were held in the Bahamas on 2 May 2007. The result was an opposition victory, with the Free National Movement, led by former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham, claiming 23 of the 41 seats. Incumbent Prime Minister Perry Christie conceded defeat in a phone call to his rival. Ingraham was sworn into the office of Prime Minister on 4 May.
General elections were held in the Bahamas on 2 May 2002. The opposition Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) won 29 of the 40 seats in the House of Assembly to defeat the governing Free National Movement (FNM). Voter turnout was 90.2%.
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The United Bahamian Party (UBP) was a major political party in the Bahamas in the 1950s and 1960s. Representing the interests of the white oligarchy known as the Bay Street Boys, it was the ruling party between 1958 and 1967. It was led by Roland Theodore Symonette.
Hubert Alexander Minnis, ON is a Bahamian politician and doctor who served as Prime Minister of the Bahamas from May 2017 to 16 September 2021. Minnis is the leader of the Free National Movement, the former governing party, and the Member of Parliament for the New Providence constituency of Killarney. First elected to the legislature in the 2007 election, he succeeded Hubert Ingraham as party leader following the party's defeat in the 2012 election.
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General elections were held in the Bahamas on 16 September 2021 to elect all 38 members of the House of Assembly.
