The Government of Saint Barthelemy
The Government of Saint Barthelemy
Government
Country name: conventional long form: Overseas Collectivity of Saint Barthelemy conventional short form: Saint Barthelemy local long form: Collectivite d'outre mer de Saint-Barthelemy local short form: Saint-Barthelemy
Government type:
Capital: name: Gustavia geographic coordinates: 17 53 N, 62 51 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
Independence: none (overseas collectivity of France)
National holiday: Bastille Day, 14 July (1789); note - local holiday is St. Barthelemy Day, 24 August
Constitution: 4 October 1958 (French Constitution)
Legal system: the laws of France, where applicable, apply
Suffrage: 18 years of age, universal
Executive branch: chief of state: President Nicolas SARKOZY (since 16 May 2007), represented by Prefect Dominique LACROIX (since 21 March 2007) head of government: President of the Territorial Council Bruno MAGRAS (since 16 July 2007) cabinet: Executive Council; note - there is also an advisory, economic, social, and cultural council elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the Territorial Council is elected by the members of the Council for a five-year term election results: Bruno MAGRAS unanimously elected president by the Territorial Council on 16 July 2007
Legislative branch: unicameral Territorial Council (19 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 1 and 8 July 2007 (next to be held in July 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - SBA 72.2%, Action-Equilibre-Transparence 9.9%, Ensemble pour Saint-Barthelemy 7.9%, Tous Unis pour Saint-Barthelemy 9.9%; seats by party - SBA 16, Action-Equilibre-Transparence 1, Ensemble pour Saint-Barthelemy 1, Tous Unis pour Saint-Barthelemy 1 note: Saint Barthelemy elects one seat to the French Senate; elections last held 21 September 2008 (next to be held in September 2014); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 1
Judicial branch:
Political parties and leaders: Action-Equilibre-Transparence [Maxime DESOUCHES]; Ensemble pour Saint-Barthelemy [Benoit CHAUVIN]; Saint-Barth d'Abord! or SBA [Bruno MAGRAS]; Tous Unis pour Saint-Barthelemy [Karine MIOT-RICHARD]
Political pressure groups and leaders: The Marine Reserve (protection of fish); Rotary Club
International organization participation: UPU, WFTU
Diplomatic representation in the US: none (overseas collectivity of France)
Diplomatic representation from the US: none (overseas collectivity of France)
Flag description: the flag of France is used