Caribbean Elections - The Bahamas Elections

Overview of Electoral System

Here, we provide an overview of the electoral system in the country. Additional information may be found in the Country Browser.

Head of State	Inherited monarchy with a Governor-General appointed by the British Monarch
Head of Government	Prime Minister is appointed by the Governor-General
Structure of Parliament	Bicameral Parliament consisting of the Senate with 16 seats and the House of Assembly with 40 seats.
Electoral Law	31 December 1969; Last amendment: 10/01/1992
Constituencies	39 single-member constituencies.
Voting System	In the Senate 16 members are appointed by the governor-general to serve 5-year terms. In the House of Assembly 40 members are elected by direct popular vote to serve 5-year terms.
Term of Office	5 years
Voter Requirements	- age: 18 years - Bahamas citizenship - 3 months minimum residence in constituency - disqualifications: insanity, imprisonment, sentence of death
Candidate Eligibility and Requirements	- age: 21 years - Bahamas citizenship - one year minimum residence in country immediately before nomination - ineligibility: undischarged bankruptcy, insanity, allegiance to a foreign State, electoral fraud, criminal conviction, sentence of death or imprisonment - nomination by four electors - payment of 400 B$, reimbursed if the candidate obtains 1/6 or more of constituency votes
Electoral Authority	Parliamentary Commissioner
Last Elections	10 May 2017
Next Elections	10 May 2022

Political Parties

Here, we provide information on active political parties. A more comprehensive list of political parties may be found in our Knowledge Centre.

Party	Political Leader
Free National Movement or FNM	Hubert MINNIS
Progressive Liberal Party or PLP	Perry CHRISTIE
Democratic National Alliance or DNA	Branville McCARTNEY

Past Elections

Here, we provide links to results of past elections. This list is not all inclusive; we will continue to update the list and encourage you to assist us in filling any observed gaps. Notify us if you think a resource listed here has become deceptive or unfactual.

Year	Specific Date	Election Type	View Results	Source
2002	27 February 2002	Referendum		IFES Election Guide
2002	2 May 2002	Parliamentary		IFES Election Guide
2007	2 May 2007	Parliamentary		IFES Election Guide
2012	7 May 2012	Parliamentary		IFES Election Guide

Election Reports

Here, we provide official reports of past elections and reports from election observation missions. This list is not all inclusive; we will continue to update the list and encourage you to suggest other resources you think we should list here. You may also view our collection of Election Observer Reports in our Reading Room.

Year	Report	Download
2012	Preliminary Statement issed by the CARICOM Electoral Observer Mission to the General Elections in the Bahamas, 7 May 2012
2012	Election Observation Mission Final Report for General Elections in the Bahamas, May 7, 2012

Party Manifestos

Here, we provide party manifestos from previous elections. This list is not all inclusive; we will continue to update the list and encourage you to suggest other resources you think we should list here. You may also view our collection of manifestos in our Reading Room.

DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL ALLIANCE (DNA)

DNA 2017	DNA 2012

FREE NATIONAL MOVEMENT (FNM)

FNM 2017	FNM 2012	FNM 2007

PROGRESSIVE LIBERAL PARTY (PLP)

PLP 2017	PLP 2012	PLP 2007

BAHAMAS CONSTITUTION PARTY (BCP)

BCP 2012