TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO
Parliamentary Chamber: House of Representatives

ELECTIONS HELD IN 1991

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Chamber:
  House of Representatives


Dates of elections / renewal (from/to):

  16 December 1991


Purpose of elections:

  Elections were held for all the seats of the House of Representatives on the normal expiry of the members’ term of office.


Background and outcome of elections:

  The election date was set in November 1991. The main campaign issues were the controversial economic austerity plan introduced by the National Alliance for Reconstruction (NAR) Government, the high rate of unemployment, the escalation in the crime rate, the deterioration of the public utilities and the alienation and pauperisation of the majority of the population. Altogether, 141 candidates and four political parties contested the election.

The polling brought the People’s National Movement (PNM) to power with 21 of the 36 seats in the House of Representatives. In the second political change in five years, the PNM rebounded after its defeat in the 1986 elections, in which PNM leader Patrick Manning had been one of only three members to win a seat, the centrist NAR taking the other 33. This time, however, the NAR retained only the two Tobago seats - one of them by Mr. A.N.R. Robinson, the outgoing Prime Minister. Mr. Manning was sworn in as new Prime Minister on 17 December and named his 24-member Cabinet a few days later. For the first time in the country’s history, a woman was appointed as the Speaker - Miss Occah Seapaul.

STATISTICS
Round no 1 (16 December 1991): Elections results  
Number of registered electors 794,486
Voters 522,472 (65.76%)
Blank or invalid ballot papers 2,775
Valid votes 519,697

Round no 1: Distribution of votes  
Political Group Candidates Votes %
People’s National Movement (PNM) 36 233,950 45.02
United National Congress (UNC) 35 151,046 29.06
National Alliance for Reconstruction (NAR) 36 127,335 24.50
National Joint Action Committee (NJAC) 3 5,743 1.11

Round no 1: Distribution of seats  
Political Group Total Gain/Loss
People’s National Movement (PNM) 21 +18
United National Congress (UNC) 13 +13
National Alliance for Reconstruction (NAR) 2 -31
National Joint Action Committee (NJAC) 1 +1

Comments:
  Including the Speaker.

Distribution of seats according to sex:  
Men: 32
Women: 5

Distribution of seats according to age:  
30-39 years 4
40-49 years 17
50-59 years 12
60-69 years 4


Distribution of seats according to profession:

 
Lawyers 9
Teachers & Lecturers 6
Businessmen 1
Human resource consultants 1
Geologists 2
Doctors 2
Others 15


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Copyright © 1991 Inter-Parliamentary Union