Government & politics — Grenada
Government structure, legal system, citizenship, and international relations.
Profile updated 2026-06-02
⚡ Government & politics at a glance
Government structure, legal system, citizenship, and international relations. Key figure for Grenada: None
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Identity & names
- Full Country Name
None
- Country Name
Grenada
- Etymology- history of name
- Derivation of the name remains obscure
- some sources attribute the designation to Spanish influence (most likely named for the Spanish city of Granada), with subsequent French and English interpretations resulting in the present-day Grenada
- in Spanish "granada" means "pomegranate"
- Independence
7 February 1974 (from the UK)
- National Holiday
Independence Day, 7 February (1974)
Political system
- Government Type
Parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm
- Constitution
- History: Previous 1967; latest presented 19 December 1973, effective 7 February 1974, suspende
- d 1979 following a revolution but restored in 1983 Amendments: Proposed by either house of Parliament; passage requires a two-thirds majority vote by the membership in both houses and assent of the governor-general; passage of amendments to constitutional sections, such as personal rights and freedoms, the structure, authorities, and procedures of the branches of government, the delimitation of electoral constituencies, or the procedure for amending the constitution, also requires two-thirds majority approval in a referendum; amended 1991, 1992
- Legal System:
Common law based on English model
- Executive Branch:
- Chief of State: King CHARLES III (since 8 September 2022); represented by Governor General
- Prime Minister Dickon MITCHELL (since 24 June 2022) Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor gener
- al on the advice of the prime minister Elections/Appointments: The monarchy is hereditary; the governor general is appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general
- Legislative Branch:
Description
Bicameral Parliament consists of: Senate (13 seats; members appointed by the governor general - 10 on the advice of the prime minister and 3 on the advice of the leader of the opposition party; members serve 5-year terms) House of Representatives (15 seats; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote to serve 5-year terms)
Elections
Senate - last appointments on 3 August 2022 (next to be held no later than 2027) House of Representatives - last held on 23 June 2022 (next to be held no later than 2027)
Election Results
- - Senate - percent by party - NA
- seats by party - NDC 7, NNP 3, independents 3 House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NDC 51.8%; NNP 47.8%
- other 0.4%
- seats by party - NDC 9; NNP 6
- Judicial Branch:
- Highest court(s): Regionally, the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC) is the superior court of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States; the ECSC - headquartered on St. Lucia - consists of the Court of Appeal - headed by the chief justice and 4 judges - and the High Court with 18 judges; the Court of Appeal is itinerant, traveling to member states on a schedule to hear appeals from the High Court and subordinate courts; High Court judges reside in the member states, with 2 in Grenada; appeals beyond the ECSC in civil and criminal matters are heard by the Judicial Committee of the
- Privy Council (in London) Judge selection and term of office: Chief justice of Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court appointed by Her Majesty, Queen ELIZABETH II; other justices and judges appointed by the Judicial and Legal Services Commission, and independent body of judicial officials; Court of Appeal justices appointed for life with mandatory retirement at age 65; High Court judges appointed fo
- r life with mandatory retirement at age 62 Subordinate courts: Magistrates' courts; Court of Magisterial Appeals
- Regions or States:
6 parishes and 1 dependency*; Carriacou and Petite Martinique*, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick
- Political Parties and Leaders:
- National Democratic Congress or NDC [Dickon MITCHELL]
- New National Party or NNP [Keith MITCHELL]
- Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
- Citizenship Criteria:
- Yes Residency requirement for naturalization: 7 years for persons from a non-Caribbean state and 4 years for a person from a Caribbean state
Capital & time
- Capital Name
Saint George's
- Capital - geographic coordinate
12 03 N, 61 45 W
- Capital Time Difference
UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
International role
- International Organization Participation:
ACP, AOSIS, CARIFORUM, CARIBCAN, Caricom, CBI, CDB, CELAC, CSME, ECCU, EPA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, ITUC, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, Petrocaribe, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WTO
- International Law Organization Participation:
Has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
- Diplomatic Representation from US:
Chief of Mission
The US does not have an official embassy in Grenada; the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Grenada Embassy: Lance-aux-Epines, Saint George's Mailing address: 3180 Grenada Place, Washington DC 20521-3180
Telephone
[1] (473) 444-1173
FAX
[1] (473) 444-4820
Email address and website
- StgeorgesACS@state.gov
- https://bb.usembassy.gov/embassy/grenada/
- Diplomatic Representation in the US:
Chief of Mission
Ambassador Tarlie FRANCIS (since 15 September 2023)
Chancery
1701 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009
Telephone
[1] (202) 265-2561
FAX
[1] (202) 265-2468 e\EMmail address and website: embassy@grenadaembassyusa.org https://grenadaembassyusa.org/
Consulate(s) general
Miami, New York