Houses of Parliament Ouses a Paaliment | |
|---|---|
| 15th Parliament of Jamaica | |
 | |
| Type | |
| Type | |
| Houses | Senate House of Representatives |
| Leadership | |
Charles III since 8 September 2022 | |
Patrick L. Allen since 26 February 2009 | |
| Structure | |
| Seats | 84 21 Senators 63 Members of Parliament |
 | |
Senate political groups |
|
 | |
House of Representatives political groups | HM Government
Official Opposition
|
| Elections | |
Senatevoting system | Appointed by theGovernor-General of Jamaica on advice of thePrime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition |
House of Representativesvoting system | First-past-the-post |
Last House of Representatives election | 3 September 2025 |
Next House of Representatives election | 3 September 2030 |
| Meeting place | |
 | |
| George William Gordon House,Kingston, Jamaica | |
| Website | |
| japarliament | |
|
|---|
|
 Jamaica portal |
17°58′26″N76°47′26″W / 17.9740°N 76.7906°W /17.9740; -76.7906
TheParliament of Jamaica (Jamaican Patois:Paaliment a Jumieka) is thelegislative branch of the government ofJamaica. Officially, they are known as theHouses of Parliament. It consists of three elements: TheCrown (represented by theGovernor-General), the appointedSenate and the directly electedHouse of Representatives.
The Senate, theUpper House, is the direct successor of a pre-Independence body known as the "Legislative Council" and comprises 21 senators appointed by the Governor-General: thirteen on the advice of thePrime Minister and eight on the advice of theLeader of the Opposition.
The House of Representatives, theLower House, is made up of 63 (previously 60) Members of Parliament, elected to five-year terms on afirst-past-the-post basis in single-seat constituencies.
As Jamaica is a parliamentary democracy modelled after theWestminster system, most of the government's ability to make and pass laws is dependent on the Prime Minister's ability to command the confidence of the members of the House of Representatives. Though both Houses of Parliament hold political significance, the House of Representatives, of which the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition are both required to be members, holds a more powerful and prestigious role since it is the main source of legislation.
The Parliament meets atGordon House at 81 Duke Street, Kingston.[1] It was built in 1960 and named in memory of Jamaican patriotGeorge William Gordon.[2]
Construction on a new parliament building directly north of Gordon House was expected to start in early 2021.[3] However, the start of construction was delayed.[4] As of May 2024[update], the project was still in the procurement phase.[5]
The House of Representatives is theLower House. It is the group of elected members of parliament.
The Senate is theUpper House. The current members are:
Jamaica Labour Party:
People's National Party:
In order to effect changes to the Constitution of Jamaica a two-thirds majority in both Houses is required. Therefore, changes to the Jamaican constitution will require consensus among Government and Opposition Senators.
| |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | |
| Jamaica Labour Party | 413,814 | 50.48 | 35 | –14 | |
| People's National Party | 403,349 | 49.20 | 28 | +14 | |
| Jamaica Progressive Party | 2,131 | 0.26 | 0 | New | |
| United Independents' Congress of Jamaica | 184 | 0.02 | 0 | New | |
| Independents | 271 | 0.03 | 0 | 0 | |
| Total | 819,749 | 100.00 | 63 | 0 | |
| Source:Jamaica Observer | |||||
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