At stake in this election:

• 36 seats in the House of Assembly

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: Queen ELIZABETH II *
• Head of Government: Premier Premier Jennifer M. SMITH
• Assembly: Bermuda has a bicameral Parliament consisting of the Senate with 11 seats and the House of Assembly with 36 seats.

* The Queen is represented by Governor Sir John VEREKER.

Description of electoral system:

• The Queen is hereditary head of state.
• In the Senate 11 members are appointed to serve 5-year terms*. In the House of Assembly 36 members are elected by popular vote to serve 5-year terms.**

* Members of the Senate are appointed by the governor, the premier and members of the opposition parties.

** During the 1998 elections, the House of Assembly consisted of 40 seats.

Main parties in the electoral race:

• Party: Progressive Labor Party (PLP)
  • Leader: Hon. Jennifer M. SMITH
  • Seats won in this House of Assembly election: 22
  • Seats won in last House of Assembly election: 26
• Party: United Bermuda Party (UBP)
  • Leader: Dr. Grant GIBBONS
  • Seats won in this House of Assembly election: 14
  • Seats won in last House of Assembly election: 14
• Party: National Liberal Party (NLP)
  • Leader: Dessaline WALDRON
  • Seats won in this House of Assembly election: 0
  • Seats won in last House of Assembly election: 0
• Party: Gombey Liberation Party (GLP)
  • Leader: Gavin Sundjata SMITH
  • Seats won in this House of Assembly election: 0
  • Seats won in last House of Assembly election: 0
• Party: Others
  • Leader: N/A
  • Seats won in this House of Assembly election: 0
  • Seats won in last House of Assembly election: N/A

Last Parliamentary election:

• The last parliamentary election was held on November 9, 1998.

Population and number of registered voters:

• Population: 63,960 (July 2002 est.)
• Registered Voters: 39,324 ( 2003 )