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Antigua and Barbuda is a sovereign island country in the Caribbean. It lies at the conjuncture of the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean in the Leeward Islands part of the Lesser Antilles.
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.
Patricia Janet Scotland,Baroness Scotland of Asthal,,is a British diplomat,barrister and politician,serving as the sixth secretary-general of the Commonwealth of Nations. She was elected at the 2015 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting and took office on 1 April 2016. She is the first woman to hold the post. She was elevated to the House of Lords in 1997 and,as a British Labour Party politician,served in ministerial positions within the UK Government,most notably as the Attorney General for England and Wales and Advocate General for Northern Ireland. She is a dual citizen of the United Kingdom and Dominica,where she was born.
The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC) is a superior court of record for the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS),including six independent states:Antigua and Barbuda,the Commonwealth of Dominica,Grenada,Saint Kitts and Nevis,Saint Lucia,Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and three British Overseas Territories. It has unlimited jurisdiction in each member State.
The House of Representatives of Antigua and Barbuda is the lower chamber of the country's bicameral parliament. Each of the constituencies created in accordance with section 62 of the Constitution shall elect one representative to the House in a direct election in accordance with the procedures specified by or pursuant to any law,subject to the rules of the Constitution. Unless he is prohibited by law from registration as a voter for the purpose of electing a member of the House,every Commonwealth citizen who is eighteen years of age or older and who meets the requirements relating to residence or domicile in Antigua and Barbuda as prescribed by Parliament is entitled to be registered as such a voter in accordance with the provisions of any law in that regard,and no other person may be registered. Every person who is registered to vote in any constituency shall,unless prohibited from doing so by any law,be entitled to vote in accordance with the provisions of any law in that regard in any election of members of the House in that constituency. Voting is free and must be done by secret ballot in accordance with any rules that Parliament may impose during House member elections.
The Senate is the Upper House of Parliament of Antigua and Barbuda. It consists of 17 members appointed by the Governor General. Ten members are appointed on the advice of the Prime Minister,four on the advice of the Leader of the Opposition,one on the advice of the Barbuda Council,one resident of Barbuda on the advice of the Prime Minister,and one at the Governor General's discretion. Subject to the provisions of Section 30 of the Constitution,any person who at the time of his appointment:is a citizen;is twenty-one years of age or older;has lived in Antigua and Barbuda for the twelve months immediately prior to the date of his appointment;and is able to speak and,unless disabled by blindness or another physical condition,to read the English language with enough proficiency to allow him to take an active part in the proceedings.
The monarchy of Antigua and Barbuda is a system of government in which a hereditary monarch is the sovereign and head of state of Antigua and Barbuda. The current Antiguan and Barbudan monarch and head of state,since 8 September 2022,is King Charles III. As sovereign,he is the personal embodiment of the Crown of Antigua and Barbuda. Although the person of the sovereign is equally shared with 14 other independent countries within the Commonwealth of Nations,each country's monarchy is separate and legally distinct. As a result,the current monarch is officially titled King of Antigua and Barbuda and,in this capacity,he and other members of the Royal Family undertake public and private functions domestically and abroad as representatives of Antigua and Barbuda. However,the King is the only member of the Royal Family with any constitutional role.
Sir Fenton Ramsahoye,QC,SC was a Guyanese lawyer and politician who served for over twenty years in Antigua and Barbuda.
President of the Senate of Antigua and Barbuda is the presiding officer in the Senate of Antigua and Barbuda. Prior to conducting any other business,the Senate must elect a senator to serve as president when it convenes following a general election.
Louise Esther Blenman is a former Appellate Judge of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court and the current Chief Justice of Belize. She is the first woman to ever be appointed to the post. On 22 November 2022,she was sworn in as the first Chief Justice of the High Court and the Court of Appeal after the successful passage of the Senior Courts Act.
Dame Bernice Lake was an Anguillan-born jurist and legal scholar whose career spanned more than forty years. In 1985,she became the first woman from the Eastern Caribbean to be appointed Queen's Counsel. Lake was also the first graduate of the University of the West Indies to receive the honor.
The Cabinet of Antigua and Barbuda is the executive branch of the government of Antigua and Barbuda. Section 70(1) of the Constitution establishes the Cabinet. The Cabinet is made up of the Prime Minister and as many other Ministers as the Prime Minister deems necessary,one of whom will be the Attorney-General and will be nominated in accordance with section 69 of the Constitution. Only the Prime Minister or,in his absence,the Minister the Prime Minister appoints in that regard,may call the Cabinet to order.
Gordon Derrick was born in the twin island state of Antigua and Barbuda located in the Caribbean in 1968. Derrick served as director of the Antigua Commercial Bank between 2004 -2015. He also served as chairman of the board of directors of ACB Mortgage and Trust Ltd. from 2007 - 2016
Jacqui Quinn-Leandro is a communications specialist from Antigua. She was the first woman to be elected to the Lower House of Parliament for Antigua and Barbuda. In 2005,she served as the first female acting prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda during a temporary absence of Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer. After two terms as a Member of Parliament,she was appointed as senator.
Sylvia Judith Bertrand was a Dominican civil servant who went on to earn a law degree in Dominica and serve as the Director of Public Prosecution. She served as Solicitor General for Dominica and later as High Court Judge for Antigua and Barbuda,Saint Vincent and the Grenadines,and the British Virgin Islands on the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court.
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.
Antiguan and Barbudan nationality law is regulated by the 1981 Constitution of Antigua and Barbuda,the various Antigua and Barbuda Citizenship Acts,the Millennium Naturalisation Act of 2004,and various British Nationality laws. These laws determine who is,or is eligible to be,a national of Antigua and Barbuda. Antiguan and Barbudan nationality is typically obtained either on the principle of jus soli,i.e. by birth in Antigua and Barbuda;or under the rules of jus sanguinis,i.e. by birth abroad to a parent with Antiguan or Barbudan nationality. It can also be granted to persons with an affiliation to the country,by investment in the country's development,or to a permanent resident who has lived in the country for a given period of time through naturalisation. Nationality establishes one's international identity as a member of a sovereign nation. Though it is not synonymous with citizenship,rights granted under domestic law for domestic purposes,the United Kingdom,and thus the commonwealth,has traditionally used the words interchangeably.
Joanne Maureen Massiah is an Antiguan and Barbudan politician and former Cabinet Minister and Member of Parliament for All Saints East and St. Luke. Currently,she is the President of the Democratic National Alliance.
Cheryl Mary Clare Hurst is an Antiguan and Barbudan politician. She is a senator of the Upper House of Parliament in Antigua and Barbuda. She was appointed senator by Prime Minister Gaston Browne. She is also the General Secretary of the Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party. Hurst was appointed senator after the 2014 general elections held in Antigua and Barbuda.
Gail Christian is an Antiguan and Barbudan politician and senator. She is a senator of the Upper House of Parliament in Antigua and Barbuda. She was appointed senator by Prime Minister Gaston Browne.
References
- 1 2 "H.E. Alincia Williams-Grant". Global Summit of Women Speakers of Parliament. Retrieved 11 February 2018.
- 1 2 "Alincia Toshiba Harriet Williams-Grant". KnowledgeWalk Institute: Caribbean Elections. Archived from the original on 11 May 2019. Retrieved 11 February 2018.