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United National Congress

United National Congress
AbbreviationUNC
LeaderKamla Persad-Bissessar[1][2][3]
ChairmanDavendranath Tancoo[4][2][3]
General SecretaryPeter Kanhai[5]
PresidiumNational Executive (NATEX)
Deputy Leaders
Vice ChairwomanKhadijah Ameen[2][3]
Leader in the SenateWade Mark
(Leader of Senate Opposition Business)
Leader in the House of RepresentativesKamla Persad-Bissessar
(Leader of the Opposition)
FounderBasdeo Panday
Founded30 April 1989 (1989-04-30)
Split fromNAR
Preceded by
18 parties
    • PDP (1953–1957)
    • TLP (1934–1957)
    • POPPG (1950–1957)
    • BP (1936–1966)
      • DLP (1957–1972)
        • LP (1966)
          • UDLP (1972–1976)
        • DLP (1971)
        • SIP (1965–1966)
        • SDLP (1972–1976)
        • WINP (1974–1976)
        • WFP (1965–1966)
          • ULF (1976–1986)
          • THM (1976–1986)
          • ONR (1973–1986)
          • DAC (1971–1986; 2005–2009)
            • NAR (1986–2005)
              • CLUB '88 (1988–1989)[8]
Headquarters5 Mulchan Seuchan Road, Chaguanas, Trinidad and Tobago[9]
NewspaperThe Checklist.[10]
Youth wingUNC Youth Arm
Women's wingUNC Women’s Arm
Affiliated Trade UnionAll Trinidad Sugar and General Workers' Trade Union (de facto)
Membership (2020)120,000+[11]
IdeologySocial democracy
Civic nationalism[12]
Third Way
Labourism[13]
Multiculturalism[14][15]
Political positionCentre-left[16][17][18]
Colors  Yellow
Political coalitionPeople's Partnership
(2010–2015)[19][20]
UNC/NTA (2023)[21]
Senate
6 / 31
House of Representatives
19 / 41
Tobago House of Assembly
0 / 12
(Does not contest)
Regional corporations
7 / 14
Regional municipalities
70 / 141
Indirectly elected mayors
2 / 7
Indirectly elected Aldermen
29 / 56
Election symbol

Sun rising above the Trinity Hills
Party flag
Website
www.uncofficial.org
www.unctt.org
Politics of Trinidad and Tobago
Government
Parliament
Judiciary
Elections
Local government
Foreign relations
flag Trinidad and Tobago portal

The United National Congress (abbr. UNC or UNCTT) is one of two major political parties in Trinidad and Tobago and the current parliamentary opposition. The UNC is a centre-left party.[22] It was founded in 1989 by Basdeo Panday, a Trinidadian lawyer, economist, trade unionist, and actor after a split in the ruling National Alliance for Reconstruction (NAR). After spending six years in opposition, the UNC won control of the government in 1995, initially in coalition with the NAR and later on its own. In the 2000 general election, the UNC won an absolute majority in the Parliament. In 2001, a split in the party caused the UNC to lose its parliamentary majority and control of the government. From 2001 to 2010, the UNC was once again Parliamentary Opposition party. In May 2010, the UNC returned to government as the majority party in the People's Partnership. The UNC's Political Leader, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, was sworn in as the first female Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago. Kamla Persad-Bissessar was Prime Minister from 2010 until 2015.

The party symbol is the sun rising above the Trinity Hills. Historically, the UNC has been supported by a majority of Indo-Trinidadians and Tobagonians, especially Hindu Indo-Trinidadian and Tobagonians,[23][24] thus it is colloquially called the Indian Party or the Hindu Party.[25] The Spiritual Baptist and other racial and religious minorities of the country also support the party.[26]

In opposition since the 2015 general election, the party holds 19 out of 41 Members of Parliament in the House of Representatives and 6 out of 31 members of the Senate, as mandated by the Constitution of Trinidad and Tobago to the official parliamentary opposition. The party has 67 out of the 139 local councillors and is in control of 7 of the 14 regional corporations since the 2019 Trinidadian local elections. The party has no representation in the Tobago House of Assembly.

As of December 2020, the UNC has 120,000+ registered members.[11]

  1. ^ "Political Leader". 6 March 2014. Archived from the original on 19 January 2021. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  2. ^ a b c "Facebook". www.facebook.com.
  3. ^ a b c "Kamla reveals her 'UNC Stars' slate". Trinidad and Tobago Newsday. 20 November 2020. Archived from the original on 28 November 2020. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  4. ^ "Chairman". 6 March 2014. Archived from the original on 19 January 2021. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  5. ^ "General Secretary". 6 March 2014. Archived from the original on 19 January 2021. Retrieved 12 February 2021.
  6. ^ "Victory for Kamla's Star Team in UNC internal elections".
  7. ^ "UNC Natex". 27 February 2013. Archived from the original on 20 January 2021. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  8. ^ Lansford, Tom (19 March 2019). Political Handbook of the World 2018-2019. CQ Press. ISBN 9781544327136. Archived from the original on 25 February 2022. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  9. ^ "UNC moves headquarters again". 31 December 2022. Archived from the original on 1 January 2023. Retrieved 4 March 2023.
  10. ^ "About Us". 7 August 2021. Archived from the original on 21 September 2021. Retrieved 21 September 2021.
  11. ^ a b "Vasant concedes to Kamla in UNC poll". Trinidad and Tobago Newsday. 7 December 2020. Archived from the original on 7 December 2020. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
  12. ^ Verma, Neena. ""ARRIVAL, SURVIVAL, AND BEYOND SURVIVAL" THE INDO-TRINIDADIAN JOURNEY TO POLITICAL AND CULTURAL ASCENDANCY" (PDF).
  13. ^ "The link between labour and politics". 19 December 2021.
  14. ^ Taylor, Kenwyn (March 2012). "MULTICULTURALISM AND THE POLITICAL PROCESS IN TRINIDAD: A CASE STUDY". Journal of the Department of Behavioural Sciences. 1 (1).
  15. ^ "Look to Canada for help".
  16. ^ Encyclopedia of World Political Systems. Routledge. 2016. ISBN 978-1-317-47156-1. Archived from the original on 25 February 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
  17. ^ Encyclopedia of World Political Systems. Routledge. 2016. ISBN 978-1-317-47156-1. Archived from the original on 25 February 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
  18. ^ "Trinidad and Tobago / Wirtschaftsanalysen - Coface". www.coface.at. Archived from the original on 1 December 2020. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
  19. ^ "Prakash Ramadhar on Partnership". 9 December 2015. Archived from the original on 17 April 2016. Retrieved 5 July 2020.
  20. ^ "Tweet". Twitter. Archived from the original on 26 May 2021. Retrieved 5 July 2020.
  21. ^ Alexander, Gail. "MND finally joins UNC/NTA alliance for LG run". The Guardian.
  22. ^ East, Roger; Thomas, Richard J. (2014). Profiles of People in Power: The World's Government Leaders. Routledge. p. 526. ISBN 9781317639404. Archived from the original on 25 February 2022. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
  23. ^ "Trinidad and Tobago (11/03)". U.S. Department of State. Archived from the original on 14 February 2019. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  24. ^ "The legacy of Indian migration to European colonies". The Economist. 2 September 2017. Archived from the original on 1 September 2017. Retrieved 2 September 2017.
  25. ^ Abraham, Sara (2007). Labour and the Multiracial Project in the Caribbean: Its History and Its Promise. ISBN 9780739116869. Archived from the original on 25 February 2022. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  26. ^ "Archbishop Burke staying true to UNC".

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