Saint Lucia Labour Party | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Leader | Philip J. Pierre |
| Founded | October 1950 |
| Headquarters | Jeremie Street Castries |
| Ideology | Social democracy |
| Political position | Centre-left |
| Regional affiliation | COPPPAL [1] São Paulo Forum [2] |
| International affiliation | Progressive Alliance [3] |
| House of Assembly | 13 / 17 |
| Senate | 6 / 11 |
| Website | |
| voteslp | |
The Saint Lucia Labour Party (SLP) is a social democratic political party in Saint Lucia. It currently holds 13 of the 17 seats in the House of Assembly.
The party was established in 1949, backed by the Saint Lucia Workers Cooperative Union. [4] In the first elections held under universal suffrage in 1951, and led by party founder George Charles, the party won five of the eight seats. It retained all five seats in the 1954 elections, and increased their majority to seven of the eight seats in 1957 and nine of the ten seats in 1961.
In 1964, the party lost an election for the first time, with the United Workers Party, born out of a schism from within the Labour Party led by John Compton and eventual merger of the breakaway faction with the People's Progressive Party, winning six of the ten seats, with the Labour Party reduced to two. It gained a seat in the 1969 elections, and increased their representation to seven seats in 1974, although the UWP remained in power as the total number of seats rose to 17.
The Labour Party returned to power after winning the 1979 elections (12/17), led by Allan Louisy, replaced as prime minister during the term by Winston Cenac, himself replaced by Michael Pilgrim. The 1979 elections were the first elections held following independence from the United Kingdom, declared on 22 February 1979.
It lost the 1982 elections to Compton's UWP when they were reduced to just two seats, challenged on their left by a breakaway faction, George Odlum's Progressive Labour Party taking 1 seat. It remained in opposition following the two elections of April 1987, increasing its presence to 8 seats in both contests, and in 1992 (6/17).
Led by Dr. Kenny Anthony, former cabinet minister in the 1979–1982 government, it won the 1997 elections, taking 16 of the 17 seats. It remained in power after the 2001 elections (14/17).
It lost the 2006 elections to the UWP, who had called back John Compton [5] as leader a year before - he had retired in 1996. Kenny Anthony remained leader of the party throughout its time as loyal opposition. The Labour Party won the 2011 Saint Lucian general election (28 November 2011), winning in 11 out of a 17-seats contest and defeating UWP leader Stephenson King who had succeeded John Compton as Prime Minister (d. 2007, in office).
The Labour Party lost the 2016 elections to the UWP by 11 seats to 6, and Kenny Anthony resigned as party leader. Former Deputy PM Philip J. Pierre was confirmed as party leader on 18 June 2016. [6] [7] [8]
| No. | Portrait | Name (Birth–Death) | Election | Term of office | Ref. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took office | Left office | Time in office | |||||
| 1 |  | Allan Louisy (1916–2011) | 1979 | 2 July 1979 | 4 May 1981 | 1 year, 306 days | [9] |
| 2 | Winston Cenac (1925–2004) | — | 4 May 1981 | 17 January 1982 | 258 days | [9] | |
| 3 |  | Kenny Anthony (born 1951) | 1997 2001 | 24 May 1997 | 11 December 2006 | 9 years, 201 days | [9] |
| 2011 | 30 November 2011 | 7 June 2016 | 4 years, 190 days | ||||
| 4 |  | Philip J. Pierre (born 1954) | 2021 | 28 July 2021 | Incumbent | 3 years, 42 days | [10] |
| Election | Party leader | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | Position | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 | George Charles | 7,648 | 49.6% | 5 / 8 |  5 | 1st | Majority government |
| 1954 | 7,462 | 47.4% | 5 / 8 |  | 1st | Majority government | |
| 1957 | 14,345 | 66.5% | 7 / 8 | 2 | 1st | Supermajority government | |
| 1961 | 11,898 | 61.5% | 9 / 10 | 2 | 1st | Supermajority government | |
| 1964 | 5,617 | 30.1% | 2 / 10 |  7 | 2nd | Opposition | |
| 1969 | Kenneth Foster [11] | 8,271 | 36.1% | 3 / 10 | 1 | 2nd | Opposition |
| 1974 | Allan Louisy | 14,554 | 44.5% | 7 / 17 | 4 | 2nd | Opposition |
| 1979 | 25,294 | 56.2% | 12 / 17 | 5 | 1st | Supermajority government | |
| 1982 | Peter Josie | 8,122 | 16.7% | 2 / 17 | 10 | 2nd | Opposition |
| 1987 (6 Apr) | Julian Hunte | 18,889 | 38.3% | 8 / 17 | 6 | 2nd | Opposition |
| 1987 (30 Apr) | 21,515 | 40.8% | 8 / 17 | | 2nd | Opposition | |
| 1992 | 25,565 | 43.2% | 6 / 17 | 2 | 2nd | Opposition | |
| 1997 | Kenny Anthony | 44,153 | 61.3% | 16 / 17 | 8 | 1st | Supermajority government |
| 2001 | 34,053 | 56.0% | 14 / 17 | 2 | 1st | Supermajority government | |
| 2006 | 36,604 | 48.3% | 6 / 17 | 8 | 2nd | Opposition | |
| 2011 | 42,456 | 50.99% | 11 / 17 | 5 | 1st | Majority government | |
| 2016 | 37,148 | 44.07% | 6 / 17 | 5 | 2nd | Opposition | |
| 2021 | Philip J. Pierre | 43,798 | 50.14% | 13 / 17 | 7 | 1st | Supermajority government |
Politics of Saint Lucia takes place in the framework of an independent parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy, with King Charles III as its head of state, represented by a Governor General, who acts on the advice of the prime minister and the cabinet. The prime minister is the leader of the majority party of the house, and the cabinet conducts affairs of state. The Governor General exercises basically ceremonial functions, but residual powers, under the constitution, can be used at the governor general's discretion. The actual power in St. Lucia lies with the prime minister and the cabinet, usually representing the majority party in parliament.
Kenny Davis Anthony is a Saint Lucian politician who was Prime Minister of Saint Lucia from 1997 to 2006 and again from 2011 to 2016. As leader of the Saint Lucia Labour Party, he was Leader of the Opposition from 2006 to 2011 and returned to office as Prime Minister on 30 November 2011 following the 2011 election. He left office after the SLP's defeat in the 2016 election and announced his resignation as party leader.
Sir John George Melvin Compton, was a Saint Lucian politician who became the first Prime Minister upon independence in February 1979. Having led Saint Lucia under British rule from 1964 to 1979, Compton served as Prime Minister three times: briefly in 1979, again from 1982 to 1996, and from 2006 until his death in 2007. He cofounded the conservative United Workers Party (UWP) in 1964; he led the party until 1996, again from 1998 to 2000, and again from 2005 to 2007.
The United Workers Party is a conservative political party in Saint Lucia currently led by former Tourism Minister Allen Chastanet, who defeated former Prime Minister Stephenson King in a July 28, 2013 leadership election. The party was led previously by Sir John Compton, the party's founder.
Vaughan Allen Lewis, KCSL CBE, is a Saint Lucian politician and a former member of the United Workers' Party (UWP). He served for a brief period as the fifth Prime Minister of Saint Lucia following the resignation of John Compton. Lewis, a former director of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States, assumed the office of Prime Minister on 2 April 1996. He also served as Minister of Finance, Planning and Development, and Minister of External Affairs. In elections that followed on 23 May 1997, Lewis and the UWP suffered a huge setback, losing all but one of their seats in Parliament, forcing him to resign in favor of the leader of the Saint Lucia Labour Party, Dr Kenny Anthony.
Bryan Michael Pilgrim is a Saint Lucian politician and former prime minister.
Sir (William) George Mallet GCSL GCMG CBE was a politician who was Governor-General of Saint Lucia and held a number of high offices in the island Saint Lucia, one of the Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles in the Eastern Caribbean. Sir George served as the Minister for Trade, Industry, Agriculture and Tourism in the first post-independence government of St Lucia beginning in 1979. In later years, Sir George served as Deputy Prime Minister and was responsible for numerous government ministries including Foreign Affairs, Home Affairs and CARICOM Affairs.
Sir George Frederick Lawrence Charles was a trade unionist, politician, founder of the Saint Lucia Labour Party and Chief Minister of Saint Lucia. He is a recipient of Saint Lucia's second-highest honour, the St. Lucia Cross (1987), and was knighted in 1988 by Queen Elizabeth II. George F. L. Charles Airport, in Castries, Saint Lucia, is named in his honour.
Philip Joseph Pierre is a Saint Lucian politician currently serving as the Prime Minister of Saint Lucia since 28 July 2021. Pierre serves as the Minister for Finance, Economic Development and the Youth Economy. He is the Leader of the Saint Lucia Labour Party since 18 June 2016. He has represented the Castries East constituency in the House of Assembly since 1997.
Marcus Neill Nicholas is a Saint Lucian politician who represented the Dennery North constituency for the United Workers Party (UWP) in the House of Assembly of Saint Lucia. He was also the Deputy Speaker of the House of Assembly.
General elections were held in Saint Lucia on 11 December 2006. The elections were fought between the Saint Lucia Labour Party (SLP) and the United Workers Party (UWP), which between them dominated politics in Saint Lucia. The results saw the governing Saint Lucia Labour Party lose the election to the United Workers Party led by John Compton, which gained eight seats to hold an eleven to six majority.
Peter Lenard "Spider" Montoute is a Saint Lucian politician and former Minister and parliamentary representative for Gros Islet for the United Workers Party (UWP). Montoute lost his seat in the 2021 Saint Lucian general election to Kenson Casimir; this was a landslide victory for the Saint Lucia Labour Party.
Ezechiel Joseph is a Saint Lucian politician and former representative for the constituency of Babonneau and senator, for the United Workers Party in the House of Assembly. Joseph served as the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, Physical Planning, Natural Resources and Co-operatives in his 2016 - 2021 tenure. Joseph lost his seat in the 2021 Saint Lucian General Election dubbed a landslide victory for the Saint Lucia Labour Party.
Stephenson King is the former Prime Minister of Saint Lucia. He is the Senior Minister and Minister for Infrastructure, Ports, Transport, Physical Development, and Urban Renewal. King was the former candidate for the United Workers Party (UWP). He now represents the constituency of Castries North as an Independent candidate as of July 2021, after resigning from the UWP.
General elections were held in Saint Lucia on 28 November 2011. The result was a victory for the opposition Saint Lucia Labour Party, which won eleven of the seventeen seats. On 30 November 2011 Labour Party leader Kenny Anthony was sworn in as Prime Minister.
Allen Michael Chastanet is a Saint Lucian businessman and politician who served as Prime Minister of Saint Lucia from 2016 to 2021. He is currently the Leader of the Opposition of Saint Lucia and the political leader of the United Workers Party as well as the parliamentary representative for Micoud South constituency.
Hunter J. François (CBE) was a Saint Lucian lawyer and politician.
General elections were held in Saint Lucia on 26 July 2021, having been constitutionally required by 12 October 2021. Voters elected all 17 members of the House of Assembly. The result was a victory for the opposition Saint Lucia Labour Party, which won 13 of the 17 seats in the House, while the ruling United Workers Party lost nine of its eleven seats, its worst result since 1997. It was the fourth consecutive election in which the incumbent government was defeated.
Shawn Edward is a Saint Lucian politician and representative in the House of Assembly for the Constituency of Dennery North for the Saint Lucia Labour Party. Edward also serves as Minister for Education, Sustainable Development, Innovation, Science, Technology and Vocational Training. Edward won his seat once again at the 2021 Saint Lucian General Election. He is also the 2nd Deputy Political Leader of the Saint Lucia Labour Party. Edward has not lost his seat since his entry in the 2011 Saint Lucian General Election.
{{cite web}}: |last1= has generic name (help)| Current parties | |
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