At stake in this election:

• 36 seats in the House of Representatives

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Arthur Napoleon Raymond ROBINSON *
• Head of Government: Prime Minister Basdeo PANDAY
• Assembly: Trinidad and Tobago has a bicameral Parliament consisting of the Senate with 31 seats and the House of Representatives with 36 seats.

* The president is elected by indirect vote by an electoral college consisting of the members of the Senate and House of Representatives. The President serves a 5-year term.

Description of electoral system:

• The President is elected by indirect vote to serve a 5-year term.
• In the Senate 31 members are appointed to serve 5-year terms*. In the House of Representatives 36 members are elected by simple majority vote in single-member constituencies to serve 5-year terms.

* In the Senate, 31 members are appointed by the president for a maximum term of 5 years.

Main parties in the electoral race:

• Party: United National Congress (UNC)
  • Leader: Basdeo PANDAY
  • Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 18
  • Seats won in last House of Representatives election: 19
• Party: People's National Movement (PNM)
  • Leader: Patrick MANNING
  • Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 18
  • Seats won in last House of Representatives election: 16
• Party: National Alliance for Reconstruction (NAR)
  • Leader: Charles HOCHO
  • Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 0
  • Seats won in last House of Representatives election: 1
• Party: Team Unity
  • Leader: Ramesh MAHARAJ
  • Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 0
  • Seats won in last House of Representatives election: 0

Last Parliamentary election:

• Elections were last held December 11, 2000.

Population and number of registered voters:

• Population: 1,272,383 (2001)
• Registered Voters: 849,874 (2001)

Gender Data:

·         Female Population: 639,938 (2001)

·         Is Trinidad and Tobago a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (27 June 1985)

·         Has Trinidad and Tobago ratified CEDAW: Yes (12 January 1990)

·         Gender Quota: No

·         Female candidates in this election: Yes

·         Number of Female Parliamentarians: 6 (House of Representatives) following the 2001 elections

·         Human Development Index Position: 64 (2014)

·         Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: Very Low (2014)

Disability Data:

·         Is Trinidad and Tobago a signatory to CRPD: Yes (27 September 2007)

·         Has Trinidad and Tobago ratified CRPD: Yes (25 June 2015)

·         Population with a disability: 190,857 (est.)