Cayman has two political parties, the People’s Progressive Movement party (PPM), led by Alden McLaughlin and the Independents.
As of December 2020, the LA became known as Parliament and MLAs became Members of Parliament.
On 24 May 2017, Cayman held a landmark election – the first with single member constituencies following a pivotal change to the country’s electoral system in 2016. In this “One Man, One Vote” electoral system, voting districts were increased to 19, with each district now only represented by one Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA).
Given the dramatic increase in the number of candidates vying for a political seat, this historic election in the Cayman Islands, was a contentious one. Since the establishment of political parties in the Cayman Islands, a record number of candidates entered the 2021 race as independents and a total of eleven were elected.
In the 2021 election, after the much talked about “horse-trading”— what locals call the period of time following an election where ministry assignments are decided. Six former Cabinet and Progressives members – Sir Alden McLaughlin, Roy McTaggart, Juliana O’Connor-Connolly, Dwayne Seymour, Joseph Hew and Moses Kirkconnell – were re-elected. However, after the much talked about ‘horse-trading’ – what locals call the period of time following an election when ministry assignments are decided – the independents, formed the government, and secured control of Cabinet.
Premier Wayne Panton holds responsibility for sustainability and climate resiliency. Deputy Premier Christopher Saunders presides over finance, economic development and labour. Minister Kenneth Bryan is responsible for tourism and transport. Minister Juliana O’Connor-Connolly once again oversees education, district administration, lands and survey, while Bernie Bush has home affairs, youth, sports, culture and heritage. Andre Ebanks is responsible for financial services and commerce and is minister for investment, innovation and social development. Johany Ebanks now has responsibility for planning, agriculture, housing, and infrastructure and Sabrina Turner has health and wellness. Former opposition leader McKeeva Bush is the Speaker of the House. Roy McTaggart is the new Leader of the Opposition, with Joey Hew as Deputy Leader.
The next general election is scheduled to be held in 2025.
Visit Government, History & Politics for more details regarding politics and Cayman’s historic election in May 2017.