British Guiana general election, 1961

Guyana
This article is part of a series on the politics and government of Guyana
Constitution President (list) Donald Ramotar Prime Minister Sam Hinds National Assembly Speaker: Raphael Trotman Political parties Recent elections General: 2011 2015 Administrative divisions Regions Neighborhood Councils Foreign relations
Other countries Atlas Politics portal

General elections were held in British Guiana in 1961.^[1] The result was a victory for the People's Progressive Party, whose leader Cheddi Jagan remained Prime Minister. However, the PPP had only won 1.6% more of the vote than the new People's National Congress, but had received almost double the number of seats. This resulted in mass demonstrations led by the PNC, a general strike and severe inter-racial violence. After a few weeks the British authorities intervened by sending in troops and the Governor declared a state of emergency.^[1]

Following these events, the country's electoral system was changed to use proportional representation. The first elections held under the new system took place in 1964.^[1]

References

Elections in Guyana General elections 1953 1957 1961 1964 1968 1973 1980 1985 1992 1997 2001 2006 2011 2015 Referendums 1978