Antigua and Barbuda is a sovereign archipelagic country composed of Antigua,Barbuda,and numerous other small islands. Antigua and Barbuda has a total area of 440 km2,making it one of the smallest countries in the Caribbean. The country is mostly flat,with the highest points on Antigua being in the Shekerley Mountains and on Barbuda the Highlands. The country has a tropical savanna climate,with pockets of tropical monsoon in Antigua's southwest. Its largest city is St. John's.
The politics of Antigua and Barbuda takes place in a framework of a unitary parliamentary representative democratic monarchy,wherein the sovereign of Antigua and Barbuda is the head of state,appointing a governor-general to act as vice-regal representative in the nation. A prime minister is appointed by the governor-general as the head of government,and of a multi-party system;the prime minister advises the governor-general on the appointment of a Council of Ministers. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the two chambers of the Parliament. The bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives.
The history of Antigua and Barbuda covers the period from the arrival of the Archaic peoples thousands of years ago to the present day. Prior to European colonization,the lands encompassing present-day Antigua and Barbuda were inhabited by three successive Amerindian societies. The island was claimed by England,who settled the islands in 1632. Under English/British control,the islands witnessed an influx of both Britons and African slaves migrate to the island. In 1981,the islands were granted independence as the modern state of Antigua and Barbuda.
Sir Lester Bryant Bird was an Antiguan politician and athlete who served as the second prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda from 1994 to 2004. He was chairman of the Antigua Labour Party (ALP) from 1971 to 1983,then became prime minister when his father,Sir Vere Bird,the previous prime minister,resigned.
Winston Baldwin Spencer is an Antiguan politician who was the third prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda from 2004 to 2014.
Asot Anthony Emmanuel Michael was an Antiguan politician who was a member of the Parliament of Antigua and Barbuda,elected from Saint Peter Constituency. He was also the Minister of Tourism,Economic Development,Investment and Energy under Prime Minister Gaston Browne. He had previously been a member of the Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party.
Sir Molwyn Joseph,KGCN,is an Antiguan politician and Chairman of the Antigua Labour Party (ALP). First entering politics in 1984 when he was made a Minister without Portfolio in the government of Vere Bird,Joseph became Minister of Finance seven years later,renegotiating the Antiguan national debt and introducing fiscal reforms. After a 1996 scandal in which it was discovered he had used his position to import a 1930s Rolls-Royce for a friend,bypassing normal import duties and taxes,he was dismissed from the Bird administration,returning 14 months later to serve as Minister for Planning,Implementation and the Environment. Following the 1999 general election,he became Minister of Heath and Social Improvement before being made Minister of Tourism and the Environment a few months later. As Minister,Joseph attempted to improve the perception of Antigua as a tourist destination and invest in the industry,spending 2 million US dollars increasing the number of hotel rooms on the island and providing money for both Air Jamaica and Air Luxor to provide flights to the island.
Sir Steadroy "Cutie" Olivero Benjamin,KGCN,is an Antiguan lawyer and politician,who is the current minister of Justice and Attorney General of Antigua and Barbuda. He previously served as Leader of the Opposition in the Parliament of Antigua and Barbuda.
General elections were held in Antigua and Barbuda on 12 June 2014. The result was a victory for the opposition Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party led by Gaston Browne,which won 14 of the 17 seats. Following the election,Browne became the country's youngest Prime Minister.
Gaston Alphonso Browne is an Antiguan politician serving as the prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda and leader of the Labour Party since 2014. Before entering politics,he was a banker and businessman.
Charles “Max”Fernandez is a Labour Party politician from Antigua and Barbuda who was the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade from June 2014 to 2018. He currently serves as Minister of Tourism,Investment and Economic Development.
The nations of Antigua and Barbuda and Mexico established diplomatic relations in 1984. Both nations are members of the Association of Caribbean States,Community of Latin American and Caribbean States,Organization of American States and the United Nations.
Maria Vanessa Bird-Browne is a politician in Antigua and Barbuda. She was elected as a member of the House of Representatives for St. John's Rural East in the Parliament of Antigua and Barbuda in 2018,becoming the youngest lawmaker in the country. She is the country's minister for housing,lands,and urban renewal.
Daryll Sylvester Matthew is an Antiguan and Barbudan politician,representing St. John's Rural South in the Antigua and Barbuda House of Representatives.
Samantha Nicole Marshall is an Antiguan MP and Cabinet Minister. Marshall had once represented St. Mary's South in the House of Representatives. She is a member of the Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party.
Melford Nicholas is an Antiguan politician,Member of Parliament and Cabinet Minister. He is currently the parliamentary representative for St. John's City East. He is a member of the Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party.
Trevor Myke Walker is a Barbudan politician,current member of parliament for Barbuda,and former Cabinet Minister under the Baldwin Spencer administration. He is a member of the Barbuda People's Movement,a party that seeks the independence of Barbuda from Antigua and Barbuda.
General elections were held in Antigua and Barbuda on 18 January 2023 to elect members of the House of Representatives. The Labour Party (ABLP) has held an absolute majority of 15 seats in the House of Representatives after the 2018 general election,with Gaston Browne remaining as prime minister. Browne initiated a constitutional referendum after the 2018 election,which was rejected by voters,and following the death of Elizabeth II in 2022,he announced his intention to organise a referendum for the transition of Antigua and Barbuda to a republican system. Besides ABLP,the United Progressive Party (UPP),Democratic National Alliance,Barbuda People's Movement (BPM),and three independent politicians filed candidacies for the 2023 general election.
St. Paul is a parliamentary constituency in Saint Paul,Antigua and Barbuda. It is currently represented by foreign minister Paul Chet Greene. It is composed of the areas of Liberta,Table Hill,Gordon,Falmouth,English Harbour,Cobbs Cross,and Nelson's Dockyard.
Rawdon Nirobi Antonio Turner is an Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party politician,who was elected as Member of Parliament for St. Peter in the by-election held on 14 January 2025 and appointed Minister of Social and Urban Transformation in the government of the Prime Minister Gaston Browne.
