People's National Movement

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People's National Movement
AbbreviationPNM
Leader Keith Rowley
Chairperson Stuart Young
General Secretary Foster Cummings
Deputy Leaders Colm Imbert (Legislative Matters)
Nyan Gadsby-Dolly (Policy Matters)
Rohan Sinanan (Party and Election Matters)
Ancil Dennis (Tobago Council Political Leader)
Leader in the Senate Amery Browne
Leader in the House of Representatives Keith Rowley
(Prime Minister)
Founder Eric Williams
Founded24 January 1956;68 years ago (1956-01-24)
HeadquartersBalisier House
1 Tranquility Street, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago
NewspaperMAGNUM
Youth wing PNM National Youth League
Women's wing PNM National Women's League
Membership (2022)Increase2.svg 105,894 [1] [2]
Ideology Liberalism
Social liberalism [3]
Nationalism [4]
Political position Centre to centre-left
Regional affiliation West Indies Federal Labour Party (1957–1962)
Colors Red
Devolved or semi-autonomous branches Tobago Council of the People's National Movement
Senate
16 / 31
House of Representatives
22 / 41
Tobago House of Assembly
1 / 15
Regional corporations
7 / 14
Regional municipalities
70 / 141
Indirectly elected mayors
5 / 7
Indirectly elected Aldermen
29 / 56
Election symbol
People's National Movement Balisier.png
Balisier flower
Website
https://pnmtt.live/

The People's National Movement (PNM) is the longest-serving and oldest active political party in Trinidad and Tobago. The party has dominated national and local politics for much of Trinidad and Tobago's history, contesting all elections since 1956 serving as the nation's governing party or on four occasions, the main opposition. It is one out of the country's two main political parties. [5] [6] [7] There have been four PNM Prime Ministers and multiple ministries. The party espouses the principles of liberalism [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] and generally sits at the centre [13] [14] [15] to centre-left [16] [17] of the political spectrum.

Contents

The party was founded in 1956 by Eric Williams, who took inspiration from Norman Manley's democratic socialist centre-left People's National Party in Jamaica. [18] [19] It won the 1956 General Elections and went on to hold power for an unbroken 30 years. After the death of Williams in 1981, George Chambers led the party. The party was defeated in the 1986 General Elections, losing 33–3 to the National Alliance for Reconstruction (NAR). Under the leadership of Patrick Manning, the party returned to power in 1991 following the 1990 attempted coup by the Jamaat al-Muslimeen, but lost power in 1995 to the United National Congress (UNC). The PNM lost again to the UNC in the 2000 General Elections, but a split in the UNC forced new elections in 2001. These elections resulted in an 18–18 tie between the PNM and the UNC, and President Arthur N. R. Robinson appointed Manning as Prime Minister. Manning was unable to elect a Speaker of the House of Representatives, but won an outright majority in new elections held in 2002 and again in 2007, before losing power in 2010. It returned to power in the 2015 general election under Keith Rowley where it had its best result since the 1981 general election, winning 51.7 percent of the popular vote and 23 of the 41 seats. In the 2020 general election, they won the popular vote and a majority in the House of Representatives, winning 22 seats.

The party symbol is the balisier flower ( Heliconia bihai ) and the Party's political headquarters is known as the "Balisier House" located in Port of Spain. Historically, the PNM has been supported by a majority of Afro-Trinidadians and Tobagonians and the Creole-Mulatto population, [20] [21] thus it is colloquially called the Black Party, the African Party, or the Creole Party. [22] [23] [24] [25] The PNM has its strongest support in cities and urban areas. [26] It was also historically supported by different minorities such as the Chinese, Christian Indians (other than Presbyterian Indians), and Muslims of any ethnicity of the country. [27] [28] [20] [21]

The PNM's signature policies and legislative decisions include independence, writing the Constitution of Trinidad and Tobago, republicanism, the establishment of the Tobago House of Assembly, the Public Transport Service Corporation, the Water Taxi Service, universal preschool, primary and secondary education, universal health care, criminalizing child marriage and decriminalizing cannabis. [29] [30] [31] [32] In government since the 2015 general election, the party holds an overall majority of 22 out of 41 Members of Parliament in the House of Representatives and 16 out of 31 members of the Senate. The party has 72 out of the 139 local councillors and is in control of seven of the 14 regional corporations since the 2019 Trinidadian local elections. The party also has one out of 12 assembly members in the Tobago House of Assembly since the December 2021 Tobago House of Assembly elections.

Despite not being a socialist party, the PNM was a member of the democratic socialist West Indies Federal Labour Party in the Federal Parliament of the West Indies Federation from 1957 to 1962. The party includes a semi-autonomous Tobagonian branch known as the Tobago Council of the People's National Movement. As of September 2018, the PNM has 100,000+ registered members. [33] [34]

Rise to power

Eric Williams, the first Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago (1962-1981) and first leader of the People's National Movement Eric Williams (cropped).jpg
Eric Williams, the first Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago (1962–1981) and first leader of the People's National Movement

When Eric Williams returned to Trinidad in 1948 he set about developing a political base. Between 1948 and 1955 he delivered a series of political lectures, under the auspices of the Political Education Movement (PEM) a branch of the Teachers Education and Cultural Association. Naparima College is one of the locations at which such lectures were delivered. [35] On 15 January 1956 Williams launched the PNM. In the 1956 General Elections the PNM captured 13 of the 24 elected seats in the Legislative Council with 38.7% of the votes cast. In order to secure an outright majority in the Legislative Council Williams managed to convince the Secretary of State for the Colonies to allow him to name the five appointed members of the council (despite the opposition of the Governor Sir Edward Betham Beetham). [36] This gave him a clear majority in the Legislative Council. Williams was thus elected Chief Minister and was also able to get all seven of his ministers elected.

In the 1958 Federal Elections (which the PNM contested as part of the West Indies Federal Labour Party), it won four of the 10 Trinidad and Tobago seats with 47.4% of the vote. The Opposition, Democratic Labour Party won the other six seats. [37]

Independence era

In the 1961 General Elections the PNM won 20 of 30 seats with 58% of the vote. With the collapse of the West Indian Federation, the PNM led Trinidad and Tobago to independence on 31 August 1962.

In the 1966 General Elections the PNM won 24 of 36 seats, with 52% of the vote. However, economic and social discontent grew under PNM rule. This came to a climax in April 1970 with the Black Power Revolution. On 13 April, PNM Deputy Leader and Minister of External Affairs A. N. R. Robinson resigned from the party and government. On 20 April, facing a revolt by a portion of the Army in collusion with the growing Black Power movement, Williams declared a State of Emergency. [38] By 22 April, the mutineers had begun negotiations for surrender. Following this certain ministers were forced to resign including John O'Halloran, Minister of Industry and Gerard Montano, Minister of Home Affairs.

In the 1971 General Elections the PNM faced only limited opposition as the major opposition parties boycotted the election citing the use of voting machines. [39] The PNM captured all 36 seats in the election, including eight that they carried unopposed. Additionally, Williams split the post of Deputy Leader into three and appointed Kamaluddin Mohammed, Errol Mahabir and George Chambers to the position.

In 1972, J. R. F. Richardson crossed the floor and declared himself an Independent. [40] He was subsequently appointed Leader of the Opposition. He was soon joined by another MP, Dr. Horace Charles.

In 1973, the PNM faced a major crisis. On 28 September Williams announced that he would not stand for re-election. This led to a race to succeed him as Political Leader of the party. By 18 November 250 of 476 registered party groups had submitted nominations, 224 of them for Attorney General Karl Hudson-Phillips and 26 for Minister of Health, Kamaluddin Mohammed. Williams announced on 2 December that he would return as Political Leader and Hudson-Phillips was forced out of the party. [41]

Decline and fall

In 1976 the PNM won 24 of 36 seats with 54% of the vote. In March 1978, Hector McClean, Minister of Works, resigned from the party and government and declared himself an independent MP.

On 29 March 1981, Eric Williams died. Williams had maintained an iron grip over the party and forced all potential rivals out of the party. In the absence of a clear successor, President Ellis Clarke was left to choose the new Prime Minister from among the three Deputy Political Leaders of the party. Clarke appointed George Chambers Prime Minister in preference to Kamaluddin Mohammed and Errol Mahabir. [42] Chambers was subsequently elected as Political Leader of the PNM and led the party to victory in the 1981 General Elections. The PNM won 26 of 36 seats and 52% of the vote.

It subsequently held on to power until 1986 when it was defeated by the National Alliance for Reconstruction (NAR) under the leadership of A. N. R. Robinson. The PNM won three of 36 seats, with 32% of the vote. Chambers resigned and was succeeded by Patrick Manning as Political Leader. [43]

Manning and the PNM re-invented

Patrick Manning, the fourth Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago (1991-1995; 2001-2010) and third leader of the People's National Movement Patrick Manning 2008.jpg
Patrick Manning, the fourth Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago (1991–1995; 2001–2010) and third leader of the People's National Movement
Keith Rowley, the seventh Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago (2015-present) and fourth leader of the People's National Movement KeithRowley.jpg
Keith Rowley, the seventh Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago (2015–present) and fourth leader of the People's National Movement

When Manning became leader he promised a "new PNM" and purposely ignored the discredited old guard. He appointed Wendell Mottley, Keith Rowley and Augustus Ramrekersingh as his deputy leaders. [44]

The PNM was returned to power in the 1991 elections after the NAR self-destructed. In the 1991 election it won 21 of 36 seats with 45% of the vote. However, in the latter half of that term the party became unstable. It lost one seat in a by-election and another when Ralph Maraj defected to the United National Congress. The issue that led Maraj to defect was the declaration of a limited State of Emergency which sole purpose was to remove Occah Seepaul (Maraj's sister) as Speaker of the House of Representatives. [45] The party also suffered a loss of support with the death Minister of Public Utilities, Morris Marshall, a favourite of the party grassroots. Attempting to halt the decline in party support Manning called an early "snap election" in 1995 . Many party front-benchers did not seek reelection including Finance Minister Wendell Mottley.

The party lost the 1995 General Elections winning 17 of 36 seats with 48% of the vote. The United National Congress (UNC) under the leadership of Basdeo Panday also won 17 seats and formed a coalition government with the National Alliance for Reconstruction which had won the remaining two seats. The PNM was further weakened when two MPs resigned from the party and threw their support behind the UNC government. This led to numerous calls for Manning to resign the party leadership, and for calls for Mottley to replace him. Manning declined to resign and Mottley appeared to have taken a sabbatical from politics. When leadership elections were held in 1997 Manning was challenged by Keith Rowley. Manning was returned as Political Leader.

In 2000 the PNM suffered another defeat, winning 16 of 36 seats with 46% of the vote. Another election was held in 2001 which resulted in a tie with both the PNM and UNC winning 18 seats, the PNM with 46% of the electoral vote and the UNC with 50%. However President Arthur N.R. Robinson appointed Manning as Prime Minister on the basis of "moral and spiritual grounds". (In Trinidad and Tobago's elections, the number of seats needed to occupy the lower house is really the best indicator of whether or not a party would win elections). Unable to elect a Speaker, Manning advised the President to prorogue Parliament. On 7 October 2002 General Elections were held in which the PNM won 50.7% of popular votes and 20 out of 36 seats. [46]

In government since 2015

On 9 September 2015, Keith Rowley was sworn in as the new Prime Minister, following the election victory of the PNM. [47] In August 2020, the governing PNM won the following general election, leading to the incumbent Prime Minister Keith Rowley serving a second term. [48]

Leaders of the People's National Movement

The political leaders of the People's National Movement have been as follows (any acting leaders indicated in italics): [49] [50]

Key:
   PNM    UNC    NAR
PM: Prime Minister
LO: Leader of the Opposition
†: Died in office

LeaderTerm of OfficePositionPrime Minister
1 Eric Williams Eric Williams (cropped).jpg 24 January 1956 [51] 29 March 1981PM1955–1981himself
2 George Chambers George Chambers (cropped).jpg 30 March 1981 [52] 8 February 1987PM 19811986 himself
3 Patrick Manning Patrick Manning 2008.jpg 8 February 198727 May 2010LO 19861991 Robinson
PM 19911995 himself
LO 19952001 Panday
PM 20012010 himself
4 Keith Rowley KeithRowley.jpg 27 May 2010 TBA 2022 LO 20102015 Persad-Bissessar
PM 2015presenthimself
Keith RowleyPatrick ManningGeorge ChambersEric WilliamsPeople's National Movement

Deputy leaders of the People's National Movement

The deputy political leaders of the People's National Movement have been as follows (any acting leaders indicated in italics):

Deputy LeaderTermConcurrent Office(s)Deputy LeaderTermConcurrent Office(s)Deputy LeaderTermConcurrent Office(s)Deputy LeaderTermConcurrent Office(s)Leader(s)
Patrick Solomon [53]

(1910-1997)

MP for Port of Spain South

Male portrait placeholder cropped.jpg 19561966
  • Minister of Education and Culture
  • Minister of Home Affairs
  • Deputy Prime Minister
  • Minister of External Affairs
Williams
A. N. R. Robinson [54]

(1926-2014)

MP for Tobago East

A. N. R. Robinson (cropped).jpg 19671970
George Chambers

(1928-1997) MP for St. Ann's East

George Chambers (cropped).jpg 197130 March 1981 Errol Mahabir

(1931-2015)

MP for San Fernando West

Male portrait placeholder cropped.jpg 1971Kamaluddin Mohammed (1927-2015)MP for Barataria Male portrait placeholder cropped.jpg 1971
Keith Rowley

(born 1949)

MP for Diego Martin West

KeithRowley.jpg 19871995 Wendell Mottley (born 1941) MP for St. Ann's East Male portrait placeholder cropped.jpg Augustus Ramrekersingh (born )MP for St. Joseph Male portrait placeholder cropped.jpg
  • Minister of Education
Manning
Joan Yuille-Williams

(born )

(party and elections)

Female portrait placeholder cropped.jpg 1996 [55] Incumbent
  • Minister of Community Development, Culture and Gender Affairs
Kenneth Valley

(1948-2011)

MP for

Diego Martin Central

Male portrait placeholder cropped.jpg Nafeesa Mohammed (born ) Female portrait placeholder cropped.jpg 19972011
  • Opposition Senator
Orville London (born 1945 [56] ) (Tobago) AM for Scarborough/Calder Hall Orville London (cropped).jpg 1998 [57] 3 July 2016 Chief Secretary of Tobago
Rohan Sinanan

(born )(policy)

Male portrait placeholder cropped.jpg Incumbent
  • Minister of Works and Transport
  • Government Senator
Marlene McDonald

(born )(legislation)

MP for Port of Spain South

Female portrait placeholder cropped.jpg 13 August 2019
  • Minister of Public Administration
  • Minister of Public Utilities
  • Minister of Housing and Urban Development
  • Minister of Community Development, Culture and Gender Affairs
Rowley
Fitzgerald Hinds (born )(legislation) MP for Laventille West Male portrait placeholder cropped.jpg 10 November 2019 Incumbent
  • Minister in the Attorney General's Ministry
Kelvin Charles (born 1957 [58] )(Tobago) AM for Black Rock/Whim/Spring Garden Kelvin Charles (cropped).jpg 3 July 201626 January 2020 Chief Secretary of Tobago
Tracy Davidson-Celestine

(born 1978)(Tobago)

Tracy Davidson-Celestine portrait (cropped).png 26 January 2020 1 May 2022

Tobago Council leaders

The deputy political leaders who additionally served as the political leaders of the Tobago Council of the People's National Movement have been as follows (any acting leaders indicated in italics):

Key:
   PNM    PDP
MaL: Majority Leader
MiL: Minority Leader

LeaderTermPositionChief Secretary
1Orville London Orville London (cropped).jpg 20013 July 2016MaL 20012017 himself
2Kelvin Charles Kelvin Charles (cropped).jpg 3 July 201626 January 2020MaL 2017–2020himself
3 Tracy Davidson-Celestine Tracy Davidson-Celestine portrait (cropped).png 26 January 2020

(Elected)

1 May 2022None
(lost the December 2021 Tobago House of Assembly election for her constituency)
Kelvin Charles
Ancil Dennis
Farley Chavez Augustine
4Ancil Dennis Male portrait placeholder cropped.jpg 1 May 2022

(Elected)

NoneFarley Chavez Augustine

PNM Leadership Executive Committee

PositionOfficeholder
Political Leader Keith Rowley
Chairman Stuart Young
Lady Vice-Chairman Camille Robinson-Regis
Vice-ChairmanNyan Gadsby-Dolly
Deputy Political Leader Tobago Council Political Leader TBA 2022
Policy Matters Rohan Sinanan
Party and Election Matters Fitzgerald Hinds
Legislastive Matters Joan Yuille Williams
General Secretary Foster Cummings
Assistant General SecretaryPatricia Alexis
TreasurerKazim Hosein
Public Relations OfficerFaris Al-Rawi
Education OfficerLaurel Lezama Lee Sing
Labour Relations OfficerJennifer Baptiste-Primus
Elections OfficerIndar Parasam
Field OfficerTerrence Beepath
Welfare OfficerMaxine Richards
Youth OfficerJeniece Scott
Operations OfficerIrene Hinds
Social Media OfficerKwasi Robinson

Youth Arm

PositionOfficeholder
ChairpersonShenekah Kirton

Women's Arm

PositionOfficeholder
ChairwomanCamille Robinson-Regis

Tobago Council of the People's National Movement

Tobago House of Assembly Seats
Tobago House of Assembly
1 / 15

Tobago has its own PNM party with separate memberships, constituency associations, executives, offices and a political leader.

PartyLeaderLast electionGovernment
YearVotes (%)Seats
Tobago Council of the PNM Ancil Dennis Male portrait placeholder cropped.jpg 2021 40.8
1 / 12
Progressive Democratic Patriots

Electoral history

House of Representatives

Red indicates seats won by the PNM in the 2020 Trinidad and Tobago general election. Trinidad and Tobago 2020 General Election Results Map.svg
Red indicates seats won by the PNM in the 2020 Trinidad and Tobago general election.
ElectionParty leaderVotesSeatsPositionGovernment
No.%±No.±
1956 Eric Williams 105,51339.8%
13 / 24
Increase2.svg 131stPNM
1961 190,00357.0%Increase2.svg 17.2
20 / 30
Increase2.svg 7Steady2.svg 1stPNM
1966 158,57352.4%Decrease2.svg 4.6
24 / 36
Increase2.svg 4Steady2.svg 1stPNM
1971 99,72384.1%Increase2.svg 31.7
36 / 36
Increase2.svg 12Steady2.svg 1stPNM
1976 169,19454.2%Decrease2.svg 29.9
24 / 36
Decrease2.svg 12Steady2.svg 1stPNM
1981 George Chambers 218,55752.9%Decrease2.svg 1.3
26 / 36
Increase2.svg 2Steady2.svg 1stPNM
1986 183,63532.0%Decrease2.svg 20.9
3 / 36
Decrease2.svg 23Decrease2.svg 2nd NAR
1991 Patrick Manning 233,15045.1%Increase2.svg 13.1
21 / 36
Increase2.svg 18Increase2.svg 1stPNM
1995 256,15948.8%Increase2.svg 3.7
17 / 36
Decrease2.svg 4Steady2.svg 1st UNCNAR
2000 276,33446.5%Decrease2.svg 2.3
16 / 36
Decrease2.svg 1Decrease2.svg 2ndUNC
2001 260,07546.5%Steady2.svg
18 / 36
Increase2.svg 2Steady2.svg 2ndPNM Minority
2002 308,76250.9%Increase2.svg 4.4
20 / 36
Increase2.svg 2Increase2.svg 1stPNM
2007 299,81345.85%Decrease2.svg 5.05
26 / 41
Increase2.svg 6Steady2.svg 1stPNM
2010 285,35439.65%Decrease2.svg 6.2
12 / 41
Decrease2.svg 14Decrease2.svg 2nd PP
2015 Keith Rowley 378,44751.68%Increase2.svg 12.03
23 / 41
Increase2.svg 11Increase2.svg 1stPNM
2020 322,25049.08%Decrease2.svg 2.6
22 / 41
Decrease2.svg 1Steady2.svg 1stPNM
2025 TBA 2022

West Indies

ElectionParty GroupLeaderVotesSeatsPositionGovernment
No.ShareNo.Share
1958 [37] WIFLP Eric Williams 119,52747.4%
4 / 10
40.0%2nd WIFLP

Corporations

Red indicates seats and corporations won by the PNM in the 2019 Trinidadian local elections. Trinidad local election 2019 - Results by Corporation.svg
Red indicates seats and corporations won by the PNM in the 2019 Trinidadian local elections.
Election [59] VotesCouncillorsCorporations
LeaderNo.Vote share±No.±No.±
1959 Eric Williams 140,27548.1%
33 / 72
Increase2.svg 33?
1968 ?49.4%Increase2.svg 1.3%
68 / 100
Increase2.svg 35?
1971 12,28752.1%Increase2.svg 2.7%
90 / 100
Increase2.svg 22?
1977 64,72551.1%Decrease2.svg 1.0%
68 / 100
Decrease2.svg 22?
1980 74,66757.8%Increase2.svg 6.7%
100 / 113
Increase2.svg 31
11 / 11
1983 [60] George Chambers ?39.1%Decrease2.svg 18.7%
54 / 120
Decrease2.svg 46
5 / 11
Decrease2.svg6
1987 [60] Patrick Manning ?39.3%Increase2.svg 0.2%
46 / 125
Decrease2.svg 8
3 / 11
Decrease2.svg2
1992 154.81850.3%Increase2.svg 11.0%
86 / 139
Increase2.svg 40
10 / 14
Increase2.svg7
1996 155,58543.7%Decrease2.svg 6.6%
63 / 124
Decrease2.svg 23
7 / 14
Decrease2.svg3
1999 157,63146.6%Increase2.svg 2.6%
67 / 124
Increase2.svg 4
7 / 14
Steady2.svg
2003 172,52553.3%Increase2.svg 6.4%
83 / 126
Increase2.svg 16
9 / 14
Increase2.svg2
2010 Keith Rowley 130,50533.6%Decrease2.svg 19.7%
36 / 134
Decrease2.svg 47
5 / 14
Decrease2.svg4
2013 190,42142.3%Increase2.svg 8.7%
84 / 136
Increase2.svg 48
8 / 14
Increase2.svg3
2016 174,75448.2%Increase2.svg 5.9%
83 / 137
Decrease2.svg 1
8 / 14
Steady2.svg
2019 161,96243.5%Decrease2.svg 4.7%
72 / 139
Decrease2.svg 9
7 / 14
Decrease2.svg1
2023 130,86839.5%Decrease2.svg 4.1%
70 / 141
Decrease2.svg 2
7 / 14
Steady2.svg

Tobago House of Assembly

Red indicates seats won by the PNM in the 2017 Tobago House of Assembly election. Tobago House of Assembly Election Map 2017.png
Red indicates seats won by the PNM in the 2017 Tobago House of Assembly election.
Election [61] LeaderVotesSeatsPositionGovernment
No.%±No.±
1980 Eric Williams

(National party leader)

7,09744.4
4 / 12
Increase2.svg 42nd DAC
1984 George Chambers

(National party leader)

8,20041.4Decrease2.svg 3.0
1 / 12
Decrease2.svg 3Steady2.svg 2nd DAC
1988 Patrick Manning

(National party leader)

5,97735.8Decrease2.svg 5.6
1 / 12
Steady2.svgSteady2.svg 2nd DAC
1992 6,55536.7Increase2.svg 0.9
1 / 12
Steady2.svgSteady2.svg 2nd NAR
1996 5,02333.6Decrease2.svg 4.1
1 / 12
Steady2.svgSteady2.svg 2nd NAR
2001 Orville London10,50046.7Increase2.svg 13.3
8 / 12
Increase2.svg 7Increase2.svg 1st PNM
2005 12,13758.4Increase2.svg 11.7
11 / 12
Increase2.svg 3Steady2.svg 1st PNM
2009 12,31151.2Decrease2.svg 7.2
8 / 12
Decrease2.svg 3Steady2.svg 1st PNM
2013 19,97661.2Increase2.svg 10.0
12 / 12
Increase2.svg 4Steady2.svg 1st PNM
2017 Kelvin Charles13,31054.7Decrease2.svg 6.5
10 / 12
Decrease2.svg 2Steady2.svg 1st PNM
January 2021 Tracy Davidson-Celestine 13,28850.4Decrease2.svg4.3
6 / 12
Decrease2.svg4Steady2.svg 1stCaretaker
December 2021 11,943*40.8*Decrease2.svg9.6*
1 / 15
Decrease2.svg5Decrease2.svg 2nd PDP

See also

Related Research Articles

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Early general elections were held in Trinidad and Tobago on 7 October 2002, after People's National Movement leader Patrick Manning had failed to secure a majority in the hung parliament produced by the 2001 elections. This time the PNM was able to secure a majority, winning 20 of the 36 seats. Voter turnout was 69.6%.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">People's Partnership</span> Political party in Trinidad and Tobago

The People's Partnership (PP) was a political coalition in Trinidad and Tobago among five political parties: the United National Congress (UNC), the Congress of the People (COP), the Tobago Organization of the People (TOP), Movement for Social Justice (MSJ) and National Joint Action Committee (NJAC). The political leader was Kamla Persad-Bissessar. The coalition was formed in advance of the 2010 general election attempting to form a multi-ethnic opposition bloc against the People's National Movement (PNM) government led by Patrick Manning. The coalition won the 2010 General Elections defeating the People's National Movement on May 24, 2010. On September 7, 2015, the coalition was defeated in the 2015 General Elections to the People's National Movement led by Keith Rowley. The coalition saw the departure of the Movement for Social Justice in 2012 and eventually disbanded on December 8, 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Keith Rowley</span> Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago since 2015

Keith Christopher Rowley, is a Trinidadian politician serving as the seventh prime minister of Trinidad and Tobago, first elected into office on 9 September 2015 and again following the 2020 general election. He has led the People's National Movement (PNM) since May 2010 and was Leader of the Opposition from 2010 to 2015. He has also served as the Member of the House of Representatives for Diego Martin West since 1991. He is a volcanologist by profession, holding a doctorate in geology, specializing in geochemistry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leader of the Opposition (Trinidad and Tobago)</span> Parliamentary position of Trinidad and Tobago

The Leader of the Opposition is the leader of the largest political party in the House of Representatives that is not in government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Trinidad and Tobago general election</span>

General elections were held in Trinidad and Tobago on 7 September 2015. The date of the general elections was announced by Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar on 13 June 2015. The result was a victory for the opposition People's National Movement, which received 52% of the vote and won 23 of the 41 seats in the House of Representatives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2019 Trinidadian local elections</span>

Local elections in Trinidad and Tobago were held on 2 December 2019, contesting 139 electoral districts across Trinidad's 14 municipal corporation electoral areas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 Trinidad and Tobago general election</span>

General elections were held in Trinidad and Tobago on Monday, 10 August 2020, to elect 41 members to the 12th Trinidad and Tobago Republican Parliament. It was the 14th election since gaining independence from the United Kingdom in 1962 and the 22nd national election in Trinidad and Tobago ever. Tracy Davidson-Celestine, political leader of the Tobago Council of the People's National Movement (PNM) became the first woman to lead a Tobagonian political party with representation in the House of Representatives. Additionally, two of the three largest parties elected in 2015, the United National Congress (UNC) and the Congress of the People (COP), were led by women.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">January 2021 Tobago House of Assembly election</span> Deadlocked local government election in Tobago

House of Assembly elections were held in Tobago on 25 January 2021 where 12 members were elected in the eleventh election since the Assembly was established in 1980. This election marked the first time in history that both parties elected, the People's National Movement (PNM) and Progressive Democratic Patriots (PDP) won an equal number seats of 6-6, despite the PNM winning the popular vote, resulting in a deadlock and a constitutional crisis with both political parties and Prime Minister Keith Rowley seeking senior counsel advice on the way forward. This election was the first time after 20 years in power that the PNM lost its absolute majority. This election also marked the first time a female political leader was elected to the Assembly and the first time a woman led a major political party or a political party with representation in the Assembly, following the 2020 Tobago Council of the People's National Movement leadership election where Health Secretary, councillor and former Trinidad and Tobago Ambassador to Costa Rica and former Deputy Chief Secretary of Tobago Tracy Davidson-Celestine made history by being elected as the PNM's first female political leader at the regional or national level and one of the first bilingual political leaders in the country's history. If Davidson-Celestine and the PNM were to be elected with a majority to their sixth consecutive term in office, she would have made history, becoming the first female Chief Secretary of Tobago. The election was held alongside local by-elections in Trinidad in which the PNM and UNC retained two districts and the PNM losing one to the UNC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tobago Council of the People's National Movement</span> Political party in Trinidad and Tobago

The Tobago Council of the People's National Movement, also known as the Tobago Council of the PNM, PNM Tobago or PNM Tobago Council, is the longest-serving and oldest active political party in Tobago. The party is the autonomous branch of the Trinidad and Tobago People's National Movement operating in Tobago. While its political leader acts in the local capacity, they also serve as a deputy leader on a national level. The party's executives organize for both local and national election campaigns. There have been three PNM Chief Secretaries and administrations.

The 2022 People's National Movement leadership election, the last one for the PNM before the subsequent general election, took place over three days: November 26 and 27 and December 4, 2022. The current party leader and Prime Minister Keith Rowley had indicated he would most likely not seek to lead the party into the next general election. Rowley made these comments in his victory speech on the night of the 2020 Trinidad and Tobago general election, where the PNM secured a second mandate under his leadership but with the slimmest majority for a government in two decades. However, he announced that he would seek another term as the party's leader in October 2022. In the 2020 general election campaign, he indicated that he would have stood down had the PNM lost. The election followed the 2022 Tobago Council of the People's National Movement leadership election. Keith Rowley won re-election by an overwhelming majority with a low voter turnout with 9,111 out of 105,894 eligible party members voting.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">December 2021 Tobago House of Assembly election</span>

Snap House of Assembly elections were held in Tobago on 6 December 2021 to elect all 15 members of the Tobago House of Assembly (THA). The election was called following a deadlock created by the January 2021 elections which resulted in a tie between the People's National Movement (PNM) and the Progressive Democratic Patriots (PDP), with both parties winning six seats. As a result, the number of seats in the legislature was increased from 12 to 15 to avoid ties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2023 Trinidadian local elections</span>

The 2023 Trinidadian local elections were held on Monday, August 14, 2023, across all 141 electoral districts in Trinidad's 14 municipal corporation electoral areas. The elections follow a 3-2 ruling on May 18, 2023, from the United Kingdom's Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago's highest court of appeal, which stated that the government's one-year extension of the mandate of councillors and alderman was unlawful. The matter was brought before the Law Lords of the Privy Council by Ravi Balgobin Maharaj, and his legal team led by Anand Ramlogan, SC. The legal action taken by Ravi Balgobin Maharaj was necessary after the PNM government decided to extend the election by one year, which the Privy Council ruled was inconsistent with the rule of Democracy. The judgement handed down to Ravi Balgobin Maharaj by the Law Lords was a landmark ruling in the Commonwealth and marks the first time that a Court upheld the rights of citizens to vote in a Local Government Election.

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