British Guiana general election, 1957

Last updated
Coat of Arms of Guyana.svg
This article is part of a series on the
politics and government of
Guyana
Constitution

General elections were held in British Guiana on 12 August 1957. [1] The result was a victory for the faction of the People's Progressive Party led by Cheddi Jagan, who remained Prime Minister. [2]

British Guiana British posession in the Guianas region between 1814–1966

British Guiana was the name of the British colony, part of the British West Indies (Caribbean), on the northern coast of South America, now known as the independent nation of Guyana.

Peoples Progressive Party (Guyana)

The People's Progressive Party is a left-wing political party in Guyana. The party currently holds 32 of the 65 seats in the National Assembly, and has been the ruling party on several occasions, most recently between 1992 and 2015. In Guyana's ethnically divided political landscape, the PPP regards itself as a multi-ethnic organisation, but is supported primarily by Indo-Guyanese people.

Cheddi Jagan President of Guyana, Prime Minister of Guyana, dentist

Cheddi Berret Jagan was a Guyanese politician who was first elected Chief Minister in 1953 and later Premier of British Guiana from 1961 to 1964, prior to independence. He later served as President of Guyana from 1992 to 1997. He is widely regarded in Guyana as the "Father of the Nation".

Contents

Campaign

A total of 55 candidates contested the elections, including six independents. The National Labour Front was the only party to run a candidate in every Legislative Council seat, with the two factions of the PPP both contesting 13 seats. The United Democratic Party (UDP) contested eight seats and the Guiana National Party one. [3]

National Labour Front

The National Labour Front (NLF) was a political party in Guyana.

Legislative Council (British Guiana)

The Legislative Council was the legislature of British Guiana between 1928 and 1953 and again from 1954 until 1961.

United Democratic Party (British Guiana)

The United Democratic Party (UDP) was a political party in British Guiana led by John Carter.

Results

PartyVotes%Seats+/–
People's Progressive Party (Jaganite)55,55247.509–6
People's Progressive Party (Burnhamite)29,80225.483
National Labour Front 13,46511.511New
United Democratic Party 3,0001.971New
Guiana National Party1990.170
Independents8,3577.150–4
Invalid/blank votes1,625
Total118,56410014–10
Registered voters/turnout212,51855.79
Source: GECOM

Elected members

ConstituencyMemberParty
Berbice River Ajodha Singh People's Progressive Party (Jagan)
Central Demerara Balram Singh Rai People's Progressive Party (Jagan)
Demerara-Essequibo Ram Karran People's Progressive Party (Jagan)
Demerara River Fred Bowman People's Progressive Party (Jagan)
Eastern Berbice Cheddi Jagan People's Progressive Party (Jagan)
Eastern Demerara Edward Balkaran Beharry People's Progressive Party (Jagan)
Essequibo River Brindley Benn People's Progressive Party (Jagan)
Georgetown Central Forbes Burnham People's Progressive Party (Burnham)
Georgetown North Andrew Leonard Jackson People's Progressive Party (Burnham)
Georgetown South Jainarine Singh People's Progressive Party (Burnham)
New Amsterdam Rudy Kendall United Democratic Party
North Western District Stephen Campbell National Labour Front
Western Berbice Sheik Mohamed Saffee People's Progressive Party (Jagan)
Western Essequibo Janet Jagan People's Progressive Party (Jagan)
Source: Parliament of Guyana

Aftermath

After the elections, the Burnhamite faction of the PPP merged with the UDP to form the People's National Congress. [1]

Peoples National Congress (Guyana) political party

The People's National Congress - Reform is a socialist political party in Guyana led by David A. Granger. The party currently holds 22 of the 65 seats in the National Assembly. In Guyana's ethnically divided political landscape, the PNCR is supported primarily by Afro-Guyanese people.

Related Research Articles

The recorded history of Guyana can be dated back to 1466, when Guyana de Ojeda's first expedition arrived from Spain at the Essequibo River. The history of Guyana has been shaped by the participation of many national and ethnic groups, as well as the colonial policies of the Spanish, French, Dutch, and British. The African slave rebellions in 1763 and 1823 were seminal moments in the nation's history. Africans were enslaved and transported to Guyana as slaves; in contrast, East Indians came as indentured labourers. Guyana's recent history is characterized in particular by the struggle to free itself from colonial rule, and from the lingering effects of colonialism.

United Democratic Party (Belize) political party in Belize

The United Democratic Party (UDP) is one of the two major political parties in Belize. It is the ruling party, having won the 2008, 2012 and 2015 general elections. A centre-right conservative party, the UDP is led by Prime Minister of Belize Dean Barrow.

Elections in Guyana

Elections in Guyana take place within the framework of a multi-party representative democracy and a presidential system. The National Assembly is directly elected, with the nominee of the party or alliance that receives the most votes becoming President.

Peoples Progressive Party (Malaysia) political party

The People's Progressive Party is a de-registered multiracial political party in Malaysia which was one of the component members of the National Front or Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition from 1973 to 2018. After losing the 2018 election, the party has been split into two factions – one led by Maglin Dennis D'Cruz who supported myPPP remaining part of the BN coalition and the other led by party president M. Kayveas who insisted on myPPP leaving the BN coalition. The latter emerged victorious in the immediate power struggle and myPPP subsequently exited the Barisan Nasional coalition. The Registrar of Societies (RoS) has deregistered MyPPP, which is facing leadership problems, effective Jan 14, 2019.

National Assembly of the Gambia

The National Assembly of the Gambia is the unicameral legislature of the Gambia. The authorisation for the National Assembly lies in Chapter VII of the Constitution of the Gambia. It is composed of 53 members directly elected through first past the post, and a further five members appointed by the President.

The National Alliance for Democracy and Development (NADD) is a three-party coalition of Gambian opposition political parties.

1957 British Honduras general election

A legislative election was held in British Honduras on 20 March 1957.

Vision Inspired by the People

Vision Inspired by the People (VIP) is a political party established in December 2005 in the Cayo District of Belize. It first contested municipal elections in the capital city of Belmopan on 1 March 2006, receiving 20 percent of votes cast but none of the seven seats. VIP operates primarily in Belmopan, but also has a presence in the Belize and Corozal Districts.

Pakistan Peoples Party (Shaheed Bhutto) breakaway factions of the old Pakistan Peoples Party

The Pakistan Peoples Party (Sindhi: پيپلزپارٽي شهيدڀٽو‎) is a political party in Pakistan and one of three breakaway factions of the old Pakistan Peoples Party. The party is currently headed by Ghinwa Bhutto, the widow of Murtaza Bhutto.

1953 British Guiana general election

General elections were held in British Guiana on 27 April 1953. They were the first held under universal suffrage and resulted in a victory for the People's Progressive Party (PPP), which won 18 of the 24 seats in the new House of Assembly. Its leader, Cheddi Jagan, became Prime Minister.

1961 British Guiana general election

General elections were held in British Guiana on 21 August 1961. The result was a victory for the People's Progressive Party, which won 20 of the 35 seats.

The People's Progressive Party was a political party in Saint Lucia. It was the only opposition party in the country from 1951 until 1964.

The People's Political Party was a political party in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. It was established in 1952 as a breakaway from the ruling Eighth Army of Liberation, and was the country's first lasting nationwide political party. It was the only party to contest the 1954 general elections and received three of the eight seats. In the 1957 elections it received almost half the national vote and won five of the eight seats. In 1961 it remained in power with six of the nine seats.

Guiana United Muslim Party

The Guiana United Muslim Party (GUMP) was a political party in Guyana.

Justice Party (Guyana)

The Justice Party was an Indo-Guyanese political party in British Guiana.

Gambia Coalition 2016, was a coalition of seven Gambian political parties, Civil society group and one independent candidate created to field and support a unity candidate for the Gambian opposition in the 2016 Gambian presidential election. The coalition selected real estate developer and deputy treasurer of the United Democratic Party (UDP) Adama Barrow as their candidate. Barrow officially left the UDP to allow him to run as an independent candidate, although his candidacy continued to be supported by the UDP through its membership in the coalition.

References

  1. 1 2 Nohlen, D (2005) Elections in the Americas: A data handbook, Volume I, p354 ISBN   978-0-19-928357-6
  2. "The British Declassified Files on British Guiana - 1958-1964".
  3. 1957 Elections GECOM