| Parliament name |
Parliament |
| Structure of parliament |
Bicameral |
| Chamber name |
House of Assembly |
| Related chamber (for bicameral parliaments) |
Senate
|
| BACKGROUND |
| Dates of election / renewal (from/to) |
2 May 2007 |
| Purpose of elections |
Elections were held for all seats in the House of Assembly on the normal expiry of the members' term of office. |
The elections on 2 May 2007 turned out once again to be a duel between the two major parties: the ruling Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) and the opposition Free National Movement (FNM). At stake were the 41 seats in the House of Assembly
which included one newly-created seat.
In the last elections held in 2002
the PLP had a sizeable victory
taking 29 of 40 seats
while the FNM took seven
losing 27. The remainder went to independent candidates.
The main issues in the 2007 elections
which were contested by 111 candidates
were the economy
foreign investment and immigration policy.
Prime Minister Perry Christie of the PLP
who was seeking a second consecutive term in office
called on voters to support his government's economic record
which he claimed had attracted 20 billion dollars of foreign investment. The FNM was led by Mr. Hubert Ingraham
who had been Prime Minister from 1992 to 2002. It argued that the government had done too much to accommodate investors
and insisted the country's land should be leased rather than sold to foreign investors.
The ruling PLP had been under severe criticism due to several scandals
including the residency application of American model Anna Nicole Smith
who lived in the Bahamas until her death in the US in February 2007. The Immigration Minister had been forced to resign
after being accused of having fast-tracked Smith's resident permit.
Against this background
both parties pledged to deal squarely with migration and to take steps to stem illegal immigration to the country.
Over 91 per cent of the country's 150
000 registered voters turned out at the polls.
The final results gave the FNM 23 seats
while the PLP took 18
losing nine. Mr. Christie became the first Bahamian Prime Minister to be ousted after only one term in office.
On 4 May
Mr. Ingraham was sworn in as Prime Minister.
On 23 May
the newly elected House of Assembly held its first session together with the Senate. The Senate comprises 16 appointed members but was convened with three vacant seats due to a row over the allocation of these three seats (see note). On the same day
Mr. Alvin Smith (FNM) was appointed Speaker of the House of Assembly. On 24 May
Ms. Lynn Holowesko was appointed Senate President.
Note:
The Prime Minister designates nine senators
while the leader of the opposition names four. The Governor-General appoints the remaining three on the advice of the Prime Minister
after consultation with the opposition leader. The PLP insisted that these three seats should be given to the PLP pursuant to Articles 39 and 40 of the Constitution
which provide that the Prime Minister must ensure that the balance in the House of Assembly is reflected in the Senate.
On 18 June
two new senators endorsed by the FNM were sworn in
despite the opposition of the PLP. One seat remained vacant as at 4 July 2007. |
| STATISTICS |
| Voter turnout |
| Round no 1 | 2 May 2007 |
Number of registered electors
Voters
Blank or invalid ballot papers
Valid votes |
150'654
137'667 (91.38%)
|
|
Notes
|
|
| Distribution of votes |
|
Round no 1
|
| Political Group |
Candidates |
Votes |
|
|
% |
|
|
| Free National Movement (FNM) |
41 |
68'502 |
|
|
|
|
|
| Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) |
39 |
64'637 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats |
|
Round no 1
|
| Political Group |
Total
|
|
|
|
|
| Free National Movement (FNM) |
23
|
|
|
|
|
| Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) |
18
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to sex |
Men
Women
Percent of women |
36
5
12.20%
|
| Distribution of seats according to age |
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to profession |
|
|
| Comments |
| Parliament (30.05.2007) |
Compare data for parliamentary chambers in the Last elections module
