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 Trinidad and Tobago portal |
The politics ofTrinidad and Tobago function within the framework of aunitary state regulated by aparliamentary democracy modelled on that of theUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, from which the country gained its independence in 1962. Under the 1976republicanConstitution,[1][2] themonarch was replaced ashead of state by aPresident chosen by anelectoral college composed of the members of thebicameralParliament, consisting of theSenate and theHouse of Representatives.
The country has remained a member of theCommonwealth, and has retained theJudicial Committee of the Privy Council inLondon as its highest court of appeal. The general direction and control of the government rests with theCabinet, led by aPrime Minister. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are answerable to the House of Representatives. The 41 members of the House are elected to terms of at least five years. Elections may be called earlier by the president at the request of the prime minister or after a vote of no confidence in the House of Representatives. In 1976, the voting age was reduced from 21 to 18. The Senate's 31 members are appointed by the President: 16 on the advice of the prime minister, six on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and nine independents selected by the President from among outstanding members of the community. Local government is through nineRegional Corporations and fivemunicipalities. Tobago was given a measure of self-government in 1980 and is governed by theTobago House of Assembly. In 1996, Parliament passed legislation which gave Tobago greater self-government. In 2005 Parliament approved a proposal by the independent Elections and Boundaries Commission to increase the number of seats in the House of Representatives from 36 to 41.
Party politics has generally run along ethnic lines, with mostAfro-Trinidadians supporting thePeople's National Movement (PNM) and mostIndo-Trinidadians supporting various Indian-majority parties, such as the currentUnited National Congress (UNC) or its predecessors. Most political parties, however, have sought to broaden their purview. In the run-up to the 2007 general election, a new political presence emerged calledCongress of The People (COP). Led byWinston Dookeran, the majority of this membership was formed from former UNC members. Despite gaining a significant but minority share of the vote in various constituencies, the COP failed to capture a single seat.
An early general election was called on 16 April 2010, and was held on 24 May 2010.[3] Two major entities contested the election: the incumbent PNM, and a coalition called thePeople's Partnership, led by UNC leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar, comprising the UNC, COP,Tobago Organisation of the People (TOP), and two labour and non-governmental organisations: theNational Joint Action Committee and theMovement for Social Justice.[4] The People's Partnership won 29 seats and the majority, with Kamla Persad-Bissessar being sworn in as the country's first female prime minister on 26 May 2010. The PNM won the remaining 12 seats and comprised the opposition in parliament.
After the period a new party also emerged from an ex-member of theUnited National Congress, known as theIndependent Liberal Party which was founded by FIFA ex-vice presidentJack Warner.
In the2015 general election resulted in a victory for thePeople's National Movement, which won 23 of the 41 seats led byKeith Rowley.[5] In August 2020, Prime Minister Keith Rowley’s ruling party PNM won the generalelection again.[6] On March 17, 2025 Stuart Young was sworn in as Prime Minister after Dr Keith Rowley's resignation on March 16, 2025.[7][8]
The2025 Trinidad and Tobago general election resulted in a victory for theUnited National Congress with 26 seats won and 13 won by the PNM. A new party, theTobago People's Party won the 2 seats in Tobago.Kamla Persad-Bissessar was sworn in as Prime Minister on May 1, 2025.[9]
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See also:List of prime ministers of Trinidad and Tobago
| Office | Name | Party | Since |
|---|---|---|---|
| President | Independent | 20 March 2023 | |
| Prime Minister |  | United National Congress | 1 May 2025 |
The president is elected by an electoral college, which consists of the members of the Senate and House of Representatives, for a five-year term. The prime minister is appointed by the president from among the members of Parliament; following legislative elections, the person with the most support among the elected members of the House of Representatives is appointed prime minister, usually the leader of the winning party. The cabinet membership consists of the prime minister, its head, the attorney general and any other minister chosen at the discretion of the prime minister from persons among the Members of Parliament, which constitutes elected Members of the House of Representatives and appointed Members of the Senate.
Following the2025 Trinidad and Tobago general election, the following cabinet was sworn in:[10]
Cabinet ministers of Trinidad and Tobago[12][13]
Following the 2015 general elections, a number of ministries were removed, while others were consolidated or reintroduced.
| Removed | Consolidated | Reintroduced |
|---|---|---|
| Ministry of the People | Ministry of Works and Transport (formerly Min Works and Infrastructure and Min Transport) | Ministry of Agriculture |
| Ministry of Gender | Ministry of Rural Development (formerly Local Government) | Ministry of Social Development |
| Ministry of Youth and Child Development | -- | -- |
| Ministry of Arts and Multiculturalism | -- | -- |
| Ministry of Justice | -- | -- |
| Ministry of Science, Technology and Tertiary Education | -- | -- |
| Ministry of Food Production | -- | -- |
| Ministry of Environment and Water Resources | -- | -- |
| Ministry of National Diversity and Social Integration | -- | -- |
TheParliament of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago has twochambers. TheHouse of Representatives has 41 members, elected for a five-year term in single-seatconstituencies. TheSenate has 31 members: 16 Government Senators appointed on the advice of the Prime Minister, six Opposition Senators appointed on the advice of theLeader of the Opposition and nine Independent Senators appointed by the President to represent other sectors of civil society. The 15 memberTobago House of Assembly has limited autonomy with respect toTobago.
The following tables lists the party divisions for theHouse of Representatives andTobago House of Assembly. Note that numbers in boldface denote the majority party at that particular time while italicized numbers signify a House in which the majority party changed intra-term.
| Session | Election | PNM | UNC | Total seats | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12th Republic | Monday, August 10, 2020 | 22 | 19 | 41 | |||||||
| Session | Election | PNM | UNC | COP | Total seats | ||||||
| 11th Republic | Monday, September 7, 2015 | 23 | 17 | 1 | 41 | ||||||
| Session | Election | PNM | UNC | COP | TOP | Total seats | |||||
| 10th Republic | Monday, 24 May 2010 | 12 | 21 | 6 | 2 | 41 | |||||
| Session | Election | PNM | UNC | Total seats | |||||||
| 9th Republic | Monday, 5 November 2007 | 26 | 15 | 41 | |||||||
| 8th Republic | Monday, 7 October 2002 | 20 | 16 | 36 | |||||||
| 7th Republic | Monday, 10 December 2001 | 18 | 18 | 36 | |||||||
| Session | Election | PNM | UNC | NAR | Total seats | ||||||
| 6th Republic | Monday, 11 December 2000 | 16 | 19 | 1 | 36 | ||||||
| Session | Election | PNM | UNC | NAR | Total seats | ||||||
| 5th Republic | Monday, 6 November 1995 | 17 | 17 | 2 | 36 | ||||||
| 4th Republic | Monday, 16 December 1991 | 21 | 13 | 2 | 36 | ||||||
| Session | Election | PNM | NAR | Total seats | |||||||
| 3rd Republic | Monday, 15 December 1986 | 3 | 33 | 36 | |||||||
| Session | Election | PNM | ULF | DAC | Total seats | ||||||
| 2nd Republic | Monday, 9 November 1981 | 26 | 8 | 2 | 36 | ||||||
| 1st Republic | Monday, 13 September 1976 | 24 | 10 | 2 | 36 | ||||||
| Session | Election | PNM | Total seats | ||||||||
| 3rd Independent | Monday, 24 May 1971 | 36 | 36 | ||||||||
| Session | Election | PNM | DLP | Total seats | |||||||
| 2nd Independent | Monday, 7 November 1966 | 24 | 12 | 36 | |||||||
| 1st Independent | Monday, 4 December 1961 | 20 | 10 | 30 | |||||||
| Session | Election | PNM | PDP | TLP-TND | BP | Independent | Total seats | ||||
| 9th Legislative Council | Monday, 24 September 1956 | 13 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 24 | ||||
| Session | Election | CSP | POPPG | TLP | TUCSP | BP | Independent | Total seats | |||
| 8th Legislative Council | Monday, 18 September 1950 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 6 | 18 | |||
| Session | Election | UF | TUCSP | BP | Independent | Total seats | |||||
| 7th Legislative Council | Monday, 28 October 1946 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 9 | |||||
| Session | Election | TLP | UP | Independent | Total seats | ||||||
| 6th Legislative Council | Early 1938 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 7 | ||||||
| Session | Election | PNM | PDP | Independent | Total seats |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12th | Monday, 6 December 2021 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 15 |
| 1 | 14 | ||||
| 11th | Monday, 25 January 2021 | 6 | 6 | 12 | |
| 10th | Monday, 23 January 2017 | 10 | 2 | 12 | |
| Session | Election | PNM | Total seats | ||
| 9th | Monday, 21 January 2013 | 12 | 12 | ||
| Session | Election | PNM | TOP | Total seats | |
| 8th | Monday, 19 January 2009 | 8 | 4 | 12 | |
| Session | Election | PNM | DAC | Total seats | |
| 7th | Monday, 17 January 2005 | 11 | 1 | 12 | |
| Session | Election | PNM | NAR | Total seats | |
| 6th | Monday, 29 January 2001 | 8 | 4 | 12 | |
| Session | Election | PNM | NAR | Independent | Total seats |
| 5th | Monday, 9 December 1996 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 12 |
| 4th | Monday, 7 December 1992 | 1 | 11 | 12 | |
| 3rd | Tuesday, 29 November 1988 | 1 | 11 | 12 | |
| Session | Election | PNM | DAC | Total seats | |
| 2nd | Monday, 26 November 1984 | 1 | 11 | 12 | |
| 1st | Monday, 24 November 1980 | 4 | 8 | 12 |
This table shows the number of Parliaments in which a party controlled theHouse of Representatives andTobago House of Assembly.
| Party | Parliament | Prime Ministers |
|---|---|---|
| PNM | 10 | 5 |
| UNC | 2 | 2 |
| NAR | 1 | 1 |
| No overall control | 2 |
| Party | Assembly | Chief Secretaries |
|---|---|---|
| PNM | 5 | 3 |
| NAR | 3 | 3 |
| DAC | 2 | 1 |
| PDP | 1 | 1 |
| Independent | 1 | 1 |
| No overall control | 1 |
The country's highest court is the Court of Appeal of Trinidad and Tobago,[20] whose chief justice is appointed by the president after consultation with the Prime Minister andLeader of the Opposition.[21] The currentChief Justice of Trinidad and Tobago isIvor Archie.[22] Final appeal on some matters is decided by theJudicial Committee of the Privy Council inLondon. Trinidad and Tobago was chosen by itsCaribbean neighbours (Caricom) to be the headquarters site of theCaribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) which was supposed to replace theJudicial Committee of the Privy Council in the fall of 2003. However, the government has been unable to pass legislation to effect this change.
Trinidad is divided in five MunicipalitiesArima,Chaguanas,Port of Spain,Point Fortin,San Fernando and nine Regional CorporationsCouva–Tabaquite–Talparo,Diego Martin,Penal–Debe,Princes Town,Mayaro–Rio Claro,San Juan–Laventille,Sangre Grande,Siparia, andTunapuna–Piarco.
Local government in Tobago is handled by theTobago House of Assembly.
ACP,C,Caricom,CDB,ECLAC,FAO,G-24,G-77,IADB,IBRD,ICAO,ICCt,ICRM,IDA,IFAD,IFC,IFRCS,IHO,ILO,IMF,IMO,Intelsat[clarification needed],Interpol,IOC,ISO,ITU,ITUC,LAES,NAM,OAS,OPANAL,OPCW,UN,UNCTAD,UNESCO,UNIDO,UNU,UPU,WCO,WFTU,WHO,WIPO,WMO,WTO
