Conventional long form: Commonwealth of The Bahamas
Conventional short form: The Bahamas
History: previous 1964 (preindependence); latest adopted 20 June 1973, effective 10 July 1973
Citizenship by birth: no
Citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of The Bahamas
Dual citizenship recognized: no
Residency requirement for naturalization: 6-9 years
Chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Cornelius A. SMITH (since 28 June 2019)
Head of government: Prime Minister Philip DAVIS (since 17 September 2021)
Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by governor general on recommendation of prime minister
Elections appointments: the monarchy is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; the prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister
Description: bicameral Parliament consists of
Elections: Senate - last appointments on 24 May 2017 (next appointments in 2022)House of Assembly - last held on 16 September 2021 (next to be held by September 2026)
Election results: Senate - appointed; composition - men 9, women 7, percent of women 43.8%House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - PLP 52.5%, FNM 36.2%; seats by party - PLP 32, FNM 7; composition
Note: the government may dissolve the parliament and call elections at any time
Highest courts: Court of Appeal (consists of the court president and 4 justices, organized in 3-member panels); Supreme Court (consists of the chief justice and a maximum of 11 and a minimum of 2 justices)
Judge selection and term of office: Court of Appeal president and Supreme Court chief justice appointed by the governor-general on the advice of the prime minister after consultation with the leader of the opposition party; other Court of Appeal and Supreme Court justices appointed by the governor general upon recommendation of the Judicial and Legal Services Commission, a 5-member body headed by the chief justice; Court of Appeal justices appointed for life with mandatory retirement normally at age 68 but can be extended until age 70; Supreme Court justices appointed for life with mandatory retirement normally at age 65 but can be extended until age 67
Subordinate courts: Industrial Tribunal; Stipendiary and Magistrates' Courts; Family Island Administrators
Note: the Bahamas is a member of the 15-member Caribbean Community but is not party to the agreement establishing the Caribbean Court of Justice as its highest appellate court; the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (in London) serves as the final court of appeal for The Bahamas
Name: March On, Bahamaland!
Lyrics music: Timothy GIBSON
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