Legal system:
based on English common law; judicial review of legislative acts in
the Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President George Maxwell RICHARDS (since 17 March
2003)
head of government: Prime Minister Patrick MANNING (since 24
December 2001)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed from among the members of Parliament
elections: president elected by an electoral college, which consists
of the members of the Senate and House of Representatives, for a
five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 14
February 2003 (next to be held in by January 2008); the president
usually appoints as prime minister the leader of the majority party
in the House of Representatives
election results: George Maxwell RICHARDS elected president; percent
of electoral college vote - 43%
Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (31 seats; 16 members
appointed by the ruling party, 9 by the President, 6 by the
opposition party for a maximum term of five years) and the House of
Representatives (36 seats; members are elected by popular vote to
serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 7 October 2002 (next
to be held by October 2007)
election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote - PNM
55.5%, UNC 44.5%; seats by party - PNM 20, UNC 16
note: Tobago has a unicameral House of Assembly with 12 members
serving four-year terms; last election held January 2005; seats by
party - PNM 11, DAC 1
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court of Judicature (comprised of the High Court of Justice
and the Court of Appeals; the chief justice is appointed by the
president after consultation with the prime minister and the leader
of the opposition; other justices are appointed by the president on
the advice of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission); High Court
of Justice; Caribbean Court of Appeals member; Court of Appeals; the
highest court of appeal is the Privy Council in London
Political parties and leaders:
Congress of the People [Winston Dookeran]; Democratic National
Alliance or DNA (coalition of NAR, DDPT, MND) [Gerald YETMING];
Movement for National Development or MND [Garvin NICHOLAS]; National
Alliance for Reconstruction or NAR [Dr. Carson CHARLES]; People's
National Movement or PNM [Patrick MANNING]; United National Congress
or UNC [Basdeo PANDAY]; Democratic Action Congress or DAC [Hochoy
CHARLES], note - only active in Tobago
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Jamaat-al Muslimeen [Yasin BAKR]
International organization participation:
ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-24, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt,
ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO,
ITU, ITUC, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO,
UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Marina Annette VALERE
chancery: 1708 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036
telephone: [1] (202) 467-6490
FAX: [1] (202) 785-3130
consulate(s) general: Miami, New York
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Roy L. AUSTIN
embassy: 15 Queen's Park West, Port-of-Spain
mailing address: P. O. Box 752, Port-of-Spain
telephone: [1] (868) 622-6371 through 6376
FAX: [1] (868) 628-5462