Bermudian general election, 1963

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General elections were held in Bermuda on 16 May 1963. [1] They were the first elections to be held under the new Parliamentary Election Act and included political parties. Independents won 30 of the 36 seats in the House of Assembly, with the Progressive Labour Party, which had been established three months before the elections, winning six of the nine seats it contested. [1]

Bermuda British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean

Bermuda is a British Overseas Territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. It is approximately 1,070 km (665 mi) east-southeast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina; 1,236 km (768 mi) south of Cape Sable Island, Nova Scotia; and 1,759 km (1,093 mi) northeast of Cuba. The capital city is Hamilton. Bermuda is self-governing, with its own constitution and its own government, which enacts local laws, while the United Kingdom retains responsibility for defence and foreign relations. As of July 2018, its population is 71,176, the highest of the British overseas territories.

House of Assembly of Bermuda

The House of Assembly is the lower house of the Parliament of the British Overseas Territory of Bermuda. The house has 36 Members of Parliament (MPs), elected for a term of five years in single seat constituencies using first-past-the-post voting. Bermuda now has universal voting with a voting age of 18 years. Voting is non-compulsory. The presiding officer of the House is called the Speaker.

Progressive Labour Party (Bermuda) political party of Bermuda

The BermudaProgressive Labour Party (PLP) is one of the two political parties in Bermuda. At the 18 July 2017 general election, the party won 24 of the 36 seats in the Bermudian House of Assembly to become the governing party. The party was founded in 1963, the first political party in Bermuda, and the oldest still active. It formed government from 1998 to 2012, and again since 2017.

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Electoral system

Before the passing of the Parliamentary Election Act the franchise was restricted to property owners. The Act introduced universal suffrage, but increasing the voting age from 21 to 25.

Universal suffrage Political concept

The concept of universal suffrage, also known as general suffrage or common suffrage, consists of the right to vote of all adult citizens, regardless of property ownership, income, race, or ethnicity, subject only to minor exceptions. In its original 19th-century usage by political reformers, universal suffrage was understood to mean only universal manhood suffrage; the vote was extended to women later, during the women's suffrage movement.

A voting age is a minimum age established by law that a person must attain before they become eligible to vote in a public election. Today, the most common voting age is 18 years; however, voting ages as low as 16 and as high as 25 currently exist. Most countries have set a minimum voting age, often set in their constitution. In a number of countries voting is compulsory for those eligible to vote, while in most it is optional.

However, powerful white businessmen, who were the dominant force in Parliament at the time, also passed the Watlington Amendment, which gave landowners with rateable property in the territory a second vote in their home constituency. [2] Of the 14,896 registered voters, 8,207 could cast only a single vote and 6,689 were eligible to cast a second vote. Each of the nine parish was divided into two constituencies, each of which returned two members to the House of Assembly, making a total of 36 seats. [1]

Parliament of Bermuda

The Parliament of Bermuda is the bicameral legislature in the British Overseas Territory of Bermuda. The two houses are:

Results

PartyVotes%Seats
Progressive Labour Party 5,82718.626
Independents25,47181.3830
Total31,29810036
Registered voters14,89678.15
Source: Parliamentary Registry

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1980 Bermudian general election

General elections were held in Bermuda in December 1980. The result was a victory for the United Bermuda Party, which won 22 of the 40 seats.

1983 Bermudian general election

General elections were held in Bermuda on 4 February 1983. The result was a victory for the United Bermuda Party, which won 26 of the 40 seats.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 May 1963 Parliamentary Registry
  2. Bermuda Sun, 14 December 2012, To vote or not to vote: it was not always an option