Ruby Ann Cooper-Darling (born 28 June 1941) is a Bahamian politician and stateswoman. [1]
In the 1962 Bahamian general election, Darling made history becoming the first woman to cast a vote in the country. [2]
In 1974, she ran as an independent candidate in a by-election in the St Barnabas constituency. In 1982, she was appointed a Senator and served in that capacity for five years. [3]
In the 1987 Bahamian general election, she became only the second woman to be elected to the House of Assembly. [4] She was elected in the George Town/Ragged Island constituency for the Progressive Liberal Party. [3]
In 2022, she was honoured as Ambassador for Women Affairs in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas. [5]
On November 7, 2023, Darling was sworn in as the Deputy to the Governor-General of the Bahamas. [6]
Nassau is the capital and largest city of The Bahamas. It is located on the island of New Providence, which had a population of 246,329 in 2010, or just over 70% of the entire population of The Bahamas. As of April 2023, the preliminary results of the 2022 census of the Bahamas reported a population of 296,522 for New Providence, 74.26% of the country's population. Nassau is commonly defined as a primate city, dwarfing all other towns in the country. It is the centre of commerce, education, law, administration, and media of the country.
Sir Lynden Oscar Pindling, KCMG, PC, NH, JP was a Bahamian politician who is regarded by some as the "Father of the Nation", having led the Bahamas to majority rule and independence.
Perry Gladstone Christie PC, MP is a Bahamian former politician who served as prime minister of the Bahamas from 2002 to 2007 and from 2012 to 2017. He is the second longest-serving Bahamian elected parliamentarian, representing the Centreville constituency from 1977 to 2017. He is also a former athlete. His Progressive Liberal Party is the oldest Bahamian political party, holding solid majorities in the Bahamian Parliament several times in its long history.
Hubert Alexander Ingraham, PC is a Bahamian politician who was Prime Minister of the Bahamas from August 1992 to May 2002, and again from May 2007 to May 2012. He is a member of the Free National Movement Party (FNM). Prior to the 2012 election, he was the FNM's Party Leader and was the Member of Parliament for the North Abaco constituency. He served as leader of the opposition in the House of Assembly of the Bahamas from 2005 to 2007.
The Parliament of The Bahamas is the bicameral national parliament of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas. The parliament is formally made up of the sovereign, an appointed Senate, and an elected House of Assembly. It currently sits at the Bahamian Parliament Building in Nassau, the national capital.
Sir Henry Milton Taylor was the fourth governor-general of the Bahamas, serving from February 28, 1991, to January 2, 1992.
Dame Cynthia Alexandria "Mother" Pratt is a Bahamian politician who has served as the 12th Governor-General of the Bahamas since 1 September 2023.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to The Bahamas:
Philip Edward "Brave" Davis is a Bahamian politician serving as the prime minister of the Bahamas since 2021. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Cat Island, Rum Cay & San Salvador from 1992 to 1997 and returned to the seat in May 2002, which he still represents.
The following is an alphabetical list of topics related to the Commonwealth of The Bahamas.
Hubert Alexander Minnis, ON is a Bahamian politician and doctor who served as prime minister of the Bahamas from May 2017 to 16 September 2021. Minnis is the former leader of the Free National Movement, the former governing party, and the Member of Parliament for the New Providence constituency of Killarney. First elected to the legislature in the 2007 election, he succeeded Hubert Ingraham as party leader following the party's defeat in the 2012 election.
General elections were held in the Bahamas in September 1729, the first elections in the territory.
Allyson Maynard Gibson KC is a Bahamian barrister, politician, and community rights advocate, particularly with regard to laws affecting women and children. From 2012 to 2017 she was the attorney general and Minister for Legal Affairs of The Bahamas, and leader of government business in the Senate of the Bahamas. From 2002 to 2007, she served as Minister of Financial Services and Investments in the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) administration.
Loretta Butler-Turner is a Bahamian mortician and politician. She was the leader of the opposition in the Bahamian Parliament from December 2016 to May 2017.
Dame Janet Gwennett Bostwick is a Bahamian lawyer and politician. She entered politics in 1977 with an appointment to the Senate. She was the first woman to serve as acting Prime Minister, first woman Attorney General and the first woman Member of Parliament in the Bahamas.
Dame Doris Sands Johnson was a Bahamian teacher, suffragette, and politician. She was the first Bahamian woman to contest an election in the Bahamas, the first female Senate appointee, and the first woman granted a leadership role in the Senate. Once in the legislature, she was the first woman to be made a government minister and then was elected as the first woman President of the Senate. She was the first woman to serve as Acting Governor General of the Bahamas, and was honored as Dame Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II.
Arinthia Santina Komolafe is a Bahamian politician who was elected the Leader of the Democratic National Alliance (DNA), one of the three main political parties in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, on 24 October 2017. She succeeded Christopher Mortimer, who was appointed as Interim Leader of the DNA on 24 October 2017. Mortimer was appointed Interim Leader following the DNA's defeat in The Bahamas' General Elections on 10 May 2017, when the Party failed to win a parliamentary seat out of the 39 possible parliamentary seats in the House of Assembly. Founder and inaugural leader of the DNA, Branville McCartney announced his intention to resign from the Party and front-line politics following the defeat. Komolafe is the first female leader of the DNA political party and other females such as Cynthia Pratt, former Deputy Leader of the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) and Loretta Butler-Turner, former Deputy Leader of the Free National Movement.
Sir Cornelius Alvin Smith is a Bahamian politician and diplomat, who served as the 11th Governor-General of the Bahamas from 2019 to 2023.
Shanendon Eugene Cartwright is a Bahamian politician from the opposition Free National Movement. He is the member of parliament for St. Barnabas.
St. Barnabas is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Assembly of the Bahamas recreated in 2017. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) using the First past the post electoral system. It has been represented by Shanendon Cartwright from the FNM since 2017.