Conrad Antonio Maduro is a British Virgin Islander politician and longtime leader of the United Party. Remarkably, Conrad Maduro has led his party to victory at three different general elections, but has never been appointed Chief Minister.
Maduro has contested more general elections in the British Virgin Islands than any other politician except for Lavity Stoutt and Ralph T. O'Neal, contesting ten general elections between (and including) the 1967 general election and the 2003 general election, winning four times. [2] Including by-elections, Conrad Maduro has contested 11 elections in total; equaling the record held jointly by Lavity Stoutt and Ralph O'Neal.
Whereas politics in the British Virgin Islands is normally characterised by leading politicians crossing the floor, during his political career Maduro was unusual in remaining steadfastly loyal to the United Party.
After the 1983 general election, he formed part of the coalition government and served as Minister for Natural Resources and Public Health. [3] He also performed the same Ministerial role as an opposition politician between 1972 and 1975 when Dr Q.W. Osborne was removed from his ministerial post in 1972. [4]
In 1986, he won election in the 2nd District over Prince Stoutt by just a single vote, which is tied for the record for the narrowest margin of victory in a British Virgin Islands election. [5] His victory with just 92 votes is also a record for the smallest number of votes for a victorious candidate. [6]
From 1988 to 1990, he served as the Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council of the British Virgin Islands. [7]
In June 2014 Maduro announced his desire to return the United Party to political prominence, and confirmed that if selected as a candidate he would run in the next general election. [8] If he did so then he would contest his 12th election in the British Virgin Islands, breaking the tie he presently holds with Lavity Stoutt and Ralph O'Neal for the most general elections contested. Ultimately however he did not end up contesting the 2015 general election.
| Year | District | Party | Votes | Percentage | Winning/losing margin | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | 5th District | BVI United Party | 151 | 43.6% | -44 | Lost I. Fonseca |
| 1971 | 5th District | BVI United Party | -- | -- | -- | Won |
| 1975 | 5th District | BVI United Party | 246 | 43.2% | -77 | Lost Q.W. Osborne |
| 1979 | 6th District | BVI United Party | 178 | 48.0% | -19 | Lost O. Hodge |
| 1983 | 2nd District | BVI United Party | 148 | 52.9% | +19 | Won |
| 1986 | 2nd District | BVI United Party | 92 | 38.2% | +1 | Won |
| 1990 | 2nd District | BVI United Party | 77 | 21.4% | -122 | Lost P. Stoutt |
| 1995 | At-large | BVI United Party | 1,618 | 8.3% | +183* | Won (2nd) |
| 1999 | At-large | BVI United Party | 723 | 3.02% | -1,751* | Lost |
| 2003 | At-large | BVI United Party | 590 | 2.02% | -2,725* | Lost |
| 2005 by-election | At-large | BVI United Party | 144 | 2.91% | -2,426 | Lost E. Stoutt |
| * For at-large candidates (general elections) who won, this is the vote differential from the 5th placed candidate (i.e. the candidate with the highest number of votes who was not elected). For at-large candidates who lose, this is the vote differential from the 4th placed candidate (i.e. the candidate with the lowest number of votes who was elected). | ||||||
Daniel Orlando Smith, OBE is a British Virgin Islands politician and the former Premier of the British Virgin Islands from 2011 to 2019 and from 2003 to 2007. He also formerly served as Chief Minister of the British Virgin Islands from 2003 to 2007. He first won the office when his National Democratic Party won the 2003 general election, being the party's first victory at a general election in its history.
The Virgin Islands Party (VIP) is a political party in the British Virgin Islands. It is presently led by Natalio Wheatley. It is the oldest active political party in the British Virgin Islands, and it has won more general elections (seven) than any other political party in the British Virgin Islands.
The House of Assembly of the British Virgin Islands, until 2007 known as the Legislative Council, has 15 members: 13 directly elected for four-year terms, and two ex officio members.
Ralph Telford O'Neal, OBE was a British Virgin Islander politician. He was the longest ever serving elected representative in the British Virgin Islands, and served as Chief Minister or Premier of the British Virgin Islands for three terms.
The United Party is a now defunct political party of the British Virgin Islands.
Politics of the British Virgin Islands takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic dependency, whereby the Premier is the head of government, and of a multi-party system. The British Virgin Islands are an internally self-governing overseas territory of the United Kingdom. The United Nations Committee on Decolonization includes the islands on the United Nations list of non-self-governing territories. The Constitution of the Islands was introduced in 1971 and amended in 1979, 1982, 1991, 1994, 2000 and 2007. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the House of Assembly. The Judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. Military defence is the responsibility of the United Kingdom.
General elections were held in the British Virgin Islands on 20 February 1995. The result was a victory for the incumbent Virgin Islands Party (VIP) led by Chief Minister Lavity Stoutt. The VIP won a plurality of six seats, and thus were able to form a minority government as no other party or coalition could muster a larger number of seats. The BVI United Party (UP) won three seats, and the Concerned Citizens Movement (CCM) won two seats. The two other seats were won by independents. Shortly after the election Alvin Christopher joined the VIP upon being offered a Ministerial seat, giving the VIP an outright majority.
General elections were held in the British Virgin Islands on 12 November 1990. The result was a decisive victory for the incumbent Virgin Islands Party (VIP) led by Chief Minister Lavity Stoutt. Three other parties contested the election: the BVI United Party (UP) led by Conrad Maduro, the newly formed Progressive People's Democratic Party (PPDP) led by former Chief Minister Willard Wheatley, and the newly formed Independent People's Movement (IPM) which fielded only two candidates. The only candidate from a party other than the VIP to be elected was Omar Hodge of the IPM in the Sixth District. Independent candidates won in the Fourth and Fifth Districts, and the VIP won every other available seat.
Snap general elections were held in the British Virgin Islands on 17 November 1986. The result was a victory for the Virgin Islands Party (VIP) led by Chief Minister Lavity Stoutt over the United Party (UP). Subsequent to the election, Ralph T. O'Neal became leader of the opposition despite not being head of the UP.
General elections were held in the British Virgin Islands on 11 November 1983. The result was a victory for the opposition United Party in coalition with independent candidate Cyril Romney over the governing Virgin Islands Party (VIP) led by former Chief Minister Lavity Stoutt. Each major party won four seats, and Cyril Romney was the sole remaining elected independent. Accordingly, Romney allegedly agree to join a coalition with whichever party would make him Chief Minister. The VIP declined to do so, but the UP eventually agreed thereby winning the election despite securing a smaller overall percentage of the vote.
General elections were held in the British Virgin Islands on 12 November 1979. The result was a victory for the opposition Virgin Islands Party (VIP) led by former Chief Minister Lavity Stoutt over the incumbent United Party (UP) led by Willard Wheatley. The newly formed Virgin Islands National Movement (VINM), led by Elvin Stoutt, also contested the elections but did not win any seats.
General elections were held in the British Virgin Islands on 1 September 1975. The result was one of the most confused in the Territory's history, but is officially recorded as a victory for the United Party led by Willard Wheatley over the opposition Virgin Islands Party (VIP) led by former Chief Minister Lavity Stoutt.
General elections were held in the British Virgin Islands on 2 June 1971. The result was a victory for a coalition of the VI Democratic Party (DP) together with independent candidate Willard Wheatley over the newly formed Virgin Islands Party (VIP) led by former Chief Minister Lavity Stoutt, and incumbent BVI United Party (UP) led by Conrad Maduro.
General elections were held in the British Virgin Islands on 14 April 1967. The election was the first general election after the passing of the new Constitution earlier in the same year, which introduced Ministerial Government into the British Virgin Islands for the first time. Elections under the prior Constitution introduced in 1950 to restore the Legislative Council had merely elected legislators. It is probably fair to say that 1967 marked the introduction of true direct democratic rule in the British Virgin Islands. But, notwithstanding the introduction of Ministerial Government, the resulting Legislative Council is still referred to as the 6th Legislative Council in deference to the five prior Councils elected under the 1950 Constitution.
General elections were held in the British Virgin Islands on 28 November 1963 for seats on the Legislative Council of the British Virgin Islands.
General elections were held in the British Virgin Islands in 1957 for seats on the Legislative Council of the British Virgin Islands.
Dr Qwominer William Osborne, OBE was a British Virgin Islander politician and physician.
Omar Wallace Hodge was a politician in the British Virgin Islands. Hodge was the third longest serving member of the House of Assembly after Lavity Stoutt and Ralph O'Neal. Hodge served continuously as the representative for the 6th District from his election in the 1979 general election until his surprise defeat in the 2011 general election. He served a total of 31 years, 360 days. He elected not to contest the 2015 general election.
Events from the year 1995 in the British Virgin Islands.
