The politics of Gibraltar takes place within a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic British Overseas Territory, whereby the Monarch of the United Kingdom is the constitutional head of state represented by the Governor of Gibraltar. The Chief Minister of Gibraltar is the head of Government. As a British Overseas Territory, the Government of Gibraltar is not subordinate to the Government of the United Kingdom. The British Government, however, is responsible for defence and external affairs but Gibraltar has full internal self-government under its 2006 Constitution.
Sir Peter Richard Caruana, is a Gibraltarian former politician who served as Chief Minister of Gibraltar from 1996 to 2011 and Leader of the Gibraltar Social Democrats (GSD) from 1991 to 2013.
The Gibraltar Social Democrats (GSD) is a liberal-conservative, centre-right political party in Gibraltar. The GSD was the governing party for four successive terms in office under the leadership of Peter Caruana, from the 1996 general election until the party's electoral defeat in the 2011 election by the GSLP–Liberal Alliance.
The Gibraltar Labour Party was a political party in Gibraltar. They described themselves as a progressive socialist organisation and stated that their formation was prompted by the need for a strong opposition to the government. They were founded and led by Daniel Feetham, who left the Gibraltar Socialist Labour Party.
Daniel Anthony Feetham KC MP is a Gibraltarian lawyer and former politician who served as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Gibraltar Social Democrats (GSD) from 2013 to 2017.
Gibraltar elects on the national level a legislature. The Gibraltar Parliament has 17 members, all elected for a four-year term in one constituency with each voter getting to vote for their selection of ten candidates. Gibraltar forms a single constituency but voters have only ten votes. Hence the electoral bloc with the most votes will normally get ten seats and the runners up seven.
Gibraltar is a British Overseas Territory and city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula. It has an area of 6.7 km2 (2.6 sq mi) and is bordered to the north by Spain. The landscape is dominated by the Rock of Gibraltar, at the foot of which is a densely populated town area, home to some 32,688 people, primarily Gibraltarians.
General elections were held in Gibraltar on 11 October 2007. The incumbent Chief Minister Peter Caruana narrowly won a fourth term, but opposition leader Joe Bossano had a very strong showing. Joe Bossano noted that this would be his last term as an MP, and joked that he would not join the government, despite receiving a higher personal vote than some members of the Gibraltar Social Democrats (GSD).
Gibraltar National Day, celebrated annually on 10 September, is the official national day of the British overseas territory of Gibraltar. The day commemorates Gibraltar's first sovereignty referendum of 1967, in which Gibraltarian voters were asked whether they wished to either pass under Spanish sovereignty, or remain under British sovereignty, with institutions of self-government.
A Maltese community has existed in Gibraltar since shortly after its capture by an Anglo-Dutch fleet in 1704. Following the Capture of Gibraltar, most of the existing population elected to leave, leaving behind a small population of around seventy. Immigration from neighboring Spanish towns soon followed, giving Gibraltar a very cosmopolitan population. Years of coexistence and intermarriage on the Rock soon led to a coalescence of Maltese, Italian and Andalusian culture, preserving the Mediterranean and Catholic nature of Gibraltar despite the centuries of British rule.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Gibraltar:
Keith Azopardi is a Gibraltarian lawyer and politician serving as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Gibraltar Social Democrats since 2017.
General elections were held in Gibraltar on 8 December 2011. Two parties, the Gibraltar Social Democrats (GSD) and the Progressive Democrative Party (PDP) and an alliance of the Gibraltar Socialist Labour Party (GSLP) and the Liberal Party of Gibraltar (LPG) each presented a full slate of ten candidates each, making a total of thirty candidates standing for seventeen seats in the Gibraltar Parliament. Members of Parliament in Gibraltar are elected "at-large" in a single electoral area covering the whole territory.
Fabian Raymond Picardo is a Gibraltarian politician and barrister, serving as Chief Minister of Gibraltar and Leader of the Gibraltar Socialist Labour Party since 2011. At the 2015 and 2019 Gibraltar general elections, Picardo was re-elected to two further four-year terms. He was narrowly re-elected for a fourth term in the 2023 Gibraltar general election.
His Majesty's Loyal Opposition, or the Official Opposition in Gibraltar, is led by the Leader of the Opposition. This is usually the political party with the second largest number of seats in the Gibraltar Parliament, as the largest party will usually form the government. Since the 2011 General Election, the Official Opposition has been the Gibraltar Social Democrats (GSD) led by Peter Caruana (2011–2013), Daniel Feetham (2013- –2017), Roy Clinton as Interim Opposition Leader and now Keith Azopardi.
A by-election was held to the Gibraltar Parliament on 4 July 2013 to fill the seat left vacant by the death of Housing Minister Charles Bruzon in April 2013. The Gibraltar Socialist Labour Party (GSLP), Gibraltar Social Democrats (GSD), Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) and an independent contested the by-election. The Liberal Party of Gibraltar who is in alliance and in Government with the GSLP backed the GSLP's candidate.
Marlene Dinah Esther Hassan-Nahon is a Gibraltarian historian, journalist and former politician, who served as a member of the Gibraltar Parliament from 2015 until 2023.
Roy Mark Clinton is a Gibraltarian politician, banker and author who is a member of the Gibraltar Social Democrats and currently serves as the shadow minister for finance in the Parliament of Gibraltar.
An election for the leadership of the Gibraltar Social Democrats was held after the previous leader, Daniel Feetham, resigned.
Keith Azopardi, co-founder of the PDP
Nick Cruz, co-founder of the PDP
