| Country name | conventional long form: none conventional short form: Bermuda former: Somers Islands etymology: the islands making up Bermuda are named after Juan de BERMUDEZ, an early 16th century Spanish sea captain and the first European explorer of the archipelago |
| Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK |
| Government type | Overseas Territory of the UK with limited self-government; parliamentary democracy |
| Capital | name: Hamilton geographic coordinates: 32 17 N, 64 47 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins second Sunday in March; ends first Sunday in November etymology: named after Henry HAMILTON (ca. 1734-1796) who served as governor of Bermuda from 1788-1794 |
| Administrative divisions | 9 parishes and 2 municipalities*; Devonshire, Hamilton, Hamilton*, Paget, Pembroke, Saint George*, Saint George's, Sandys, Smith's, Southampton, Warwick |
| Independence | none (Overseas Territory of the UK) |
| National holiday | Bermuda Day, 24 May; note - formerly known as Victoria Day, Empire Day, and Commonwealth Day |
| Constitution | history: several previous (dating to 1684); latest entered into force 8 June 1968 (Bermuda Constitution Order 1968) amendments: proposal procedure - NA; passage by an Order in Council in the UK; amended several times, last in 2012 |
| Legal system | English common law |
| International law organization participation | has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt |
| Citizenship | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of the UK dual citizenship recognized: yes residency requirement for naturalization: 10 years |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor Rena LALGIE (since 14 December 2020) head of government: Premier David BURT (since 19 July 2017) cabinet: Cabinet nominated by the premier, appointed by the governor elections/appointments: the monarchy is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually appointed premier by the governor |
| Legislative branch | description: bicameral Parliament consists of: Senate (11 seats; 3 members appointed by the governor, 5 by the premier, and 3 by the opposition party; members serve 5-year terms) and the House of Assembly (36 seats; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote to serve up to 5-year terms) House of Assembly (36 seats; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote to serve up to 5-year terms) elections: Senate - last appointments in August 2017 (next appointments in 2022) House of Assembly - last held on 1 October 2020 (next to be held not later than 2025) election results: Senate - composition - men 7, women 4, percent of women 36.4% House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - PLP 62.1%, OBA 32.3%, other 5.4%, independent 0.2%; seats by party - PLP 30, OBA 6; composition - NA |
| Judicial branch | highest courts: Court of Appeal (consists of the court president and at least 2 justices); Supreme Court (consists of the chief justice, 4 puisne judges, and 1 associate justice); note - the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (in London) is the court of final appeal judge selection and term of office: Court of Appeal justice appointed by the governor; justice tenure by individual appointment; Supreme Court judges nominated by the Judicial and Legal Services Commission and appointed by the governor; judge tenure based on terms of appointment subordinate courts: commercial court (began in 2006); magistrates' courts |
| Political parties and leaders | Free Democratic Movement or FDM (Marc BEAN) One Bermuda Alliance or OBA (Craig CANNONIER) Progressive Labor Party or PLP [Edward D. BURT] |
| International organization participation | Caricom (associate), ICC (NGOs), Interpol (subbureau), IOC, ITUC (NGOs), UPU, WCO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Consul General Karen GRISSETTE (since 6 July 2021) embassy: US Consulate Bermuda, 16 Middle Road, Devonshire, DV 03, Bermuda mailing address: 5300 Hamilton Place, Washington, DC 20520-5300 telephone: (441) 295-1342 FAX: (441) 295-1592 email address and website: HamiltonConsulate@state.gov https://bm.usconsulate.gov/ consulate(s) general: 16 Middle Road, Devonshire DV O3 |
| Flag description | red, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Bermudian coat of arms (a white shield with a red lion standing on a green grassy field holding a scrolled shield showing the sinking of the ship Sea Venture off Bermuda in 1609) centered on the outer half of the flag; it was the shipwreck of the vessel, filled with English colonists originally bound for Virginia, that led to the settling of Bermuda note: the flag is unusual in that it is only British overseas territory that uses a red ensign, all others use blue |
| National symbol(s) | red lion |
| National anthem | name: Hail to Bermuda lyrics/music: Bette JOHNS note: serves as a local anthem; as a territory of the United Kingdom, "God Save the Queen" is official (see United Kingdom) |
Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021
