Politics of Grenada
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| This article is part of a series on the politics and government of Grenada |
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Government
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| Administrative divisions (parishes) |
| Foreign relations |
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Politics of Grenada takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democracy, whereby the Prime Minister is the head of government. Grenada is an independent Commonwealth realm. It is governed under a multi-party parliamentary system whose political and legal traditions closely follow those of the United Kingdom; it has a prime minister and a cabinet, and a bicameral Parliament with an elected House of Representatives and an appointed Senate. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and parliament. Constitutional safeguards include freedom of speech, press, worship, movement, and association. Grenada is a member of the eastern Caribbean court system. The Judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. Jurisprudence is based on English common law.
Citizens enjoy a wide range of civil and political rights guaranteed by the constitution. Grenada's constitution provides citizens with the right to change their government peacefully. Citizens exercise this right through periodic, free, and fair elections held on the basis of universal suffrage.
Grenada has two significant political parties, both moderate: the National Democratic Congress (liberal) and the New National Party (conservative). Minor parties include the left-of-center Maurice Bishop Patriotic Movement (MBPM, organized by the pro-Bishop survivors of the October 1983 anti-Bishop coup) and the populist GULP of former Prime Minister Gairy.
At the July 2008 election the NDC won a comfortable 7 seat majority over the government of former Prime Minister Keith Mitchell. New Prime Minister Tillman Thomas formed a government after narrowly losing by one seat to Mitchell's NNP in the November 2003 election. In elections held on February 19, 2013, Keith Mitchell's NNP swept all fifteen parliamentary seats. This historic victory was a repeat of the 1999 elections in which the NNP also swept all 15 seats. Prime Minister Mitchell has the distinction as being the only Caribbean politician to sweep all seats on two separate occasions. Constitutionally, this development means that there is no official opposition in Parliament. As such, Governor General Carlye Glean, who is the titular head of state, will appoint 5 Senators to the Upper House, who will serve as the de facto opposition.
Security in Grenada is maintained by the 650 members of the Royal Grenada Police Force (RGPF), which included an 80-member paramilitary special services unit (SSU) and a 30-member coast guard. The U.S. Army and the U.S. Coast Guard provide periodic training and material support for the SSU and the coast guard.
Executive branch
As head of state, Queen Elizabeth II is represented in Grenada by a governor general who acts on the advice of the prime minister and the cabinet. The leader of the majority party serves as Prime Minister and head of government. The cabinet consists of members, including the Prime Minister and ministers of executive departments. They answer politically to the House of Assembly. The Governor General appoints the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court on the advice of the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition. The Governor General appoints the other justices with the advice of a judicial commission. The Privy Council of the United Kingdom serves as the highest appellate court.
| Office | Name | Party | Since |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monarch | Queen Elizabeth II | 6 February 1952 | |
| Governor-General | Cécile La Grenade | 7 May 2013 | |
| Prime Minister | Keith Mitchell | New National Party | 20 February 2013 |
Legislative branch
The Parliament has two chambers. The House of Representatives has 15 members, elected for a five year term in single-seat constituencies. The Senate has 13 appointed members, 10 appointed by the government and three by the leader of the opposition).
Political parties and elections
| Party | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New National Party | 32,031 | 58.82 | 15 | +11 | |
| National Democratic Congress | 22,160 | 40.69 | 0 | –11 | |
| National United Front | 186 | 0.34 | 0 | New | |
| Movement of Independent Candidates | 22 | 0.04 | 0 | New | |
| Good Old Democratic Party | 14 | 0.03 | 0 | 0 | |
| Grenada Renaissance Party | 13 | 0.02 | 0 | New | |
| Grenada United Patriotic Movement | 13 | 0.02 | 0 | New | |
| People United Labour Party | 11 | 0.02 | 0 | New | |
| Independents | 5 | 0.01 | 0 | 0 | |
| Invalid/blank votes | 64 | – | – | – | |
| Total | 54,524 | 100 | 15 | 0 | |
| Registered voters/turnout | 62,243 | 87.60 | – | – | |
| Source: Grenada Broadcast | |||||
| Parties | Votes | % | +/– | Seats | +/– |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| National Democratic Congress | 29,007 | 50.97 | +5.4 | 11 | +4 |
| New National Party | 27,189 | 47.77 | –0.2 | 4 | –4 |
| Labour Platform | 478 | 0.84 | –2.4 | — | ±0 |
| Good Old Democratic Party | 3 | 0.01 | — | — | — |
| Independents | 12 | 0.02 | — | — | — |
| Invalid votes | 222 | 0.39 | — | ||
| Total (turnout 80.3%) | 56,911 | 100.0 | 15 | ||
| Registered voters | 70,869 | ||||
| Source: Grenada Broadcast | |||||
Judicial branch
West Indies Associate States Supreme Court (an associate judge resides in Grenada)
Administrative divisions
6 parishes and 1 dependency*; Carriacou and Petit Martinique*, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick
International organization participation
ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WToO, WTrO,frat
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