St. Vincent Election Petition: PM Friday Questioned on Dual Citizenship

ST. VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES · POLITICS

The St. Vincent election petition put the prime minister on the witness stand, testing whether Canadian citizenship bars him from Parliament.

Prime Minister Godwin Friday of St. Vincent and the Grenadines took the witness stand on 29 September 2026 in an election petition over his Canadian citizenship. His foreign minister, Dwight Fitzgerald Bramble, faced the same questions in the High Court in Kingstown, the capital.

Who Is Being Challenged, and Why

St. Vincent and the Grenadines is an island nation of the eastern Caribbean and a member of the Commonwealth. Friday’s New Democratic Party (NDP) won 14 of its 15 elected seats on 27 November 2025.

It was the second-largest win in the country’s history, after the NDP took all 15 seats in 1989. It ended the long rule of the Unity Labour Party (ULP) of Ralph Gonsalves, now opposition leader.

Two defeated ULP candidates then filed election petitions, court cases that challenge the result in a constituency. Carlos Williams contests Friday’s win in the Northern Grenadines, where Friday took 2,185 votes to his 339.

Luke Browne contests Bramble’s win in East Kingstown, which Bramble won by 1,001 votes.

What the Constitution Says

Section 25 of the 1979 Constitution says a candidate must be a Commonwealth citizen aged 21 or older. Section 26(1)(a) then sets a bar.

It disqualifies anyone who, “by virtue of his own act”, is under “acknowledgment of allegiance” to “a foreign power or state”.The dispute began before the vote.

Electors lodged objections to both nominations on Nomination Day, 10 November 2025, and notices urged voters not to back either man. The petitioners argue that Canada is a foreign state.

Both men applied for Canadian citizenship themselves, took its oath and hold Canadian passports, they say. The defence argues that Canada, as a Commonwealth country, is not foreign in the sense the Constitution means.

Friday has sat in Parliament since 2001 and Bramble since 2020, and both held Canadian citizenship before they were first elected.

A Day on the Witness Stand

Justice Gertel Thom, a retired appeal judge sitting in the High Court, heard the case. The petitioners’ lawyers asked both men what their oath of allegiance to Canada means and where their loyalties lie, iWitness News reported.

They asked when the men obtained Canadian passports and why they never gave up Canadian citizenship. Friday was also questioned on a report he prepared on his status and on earlier comments to the media.

Professor Hamid Ghany, a Caribbean expert on constitutions and parliaments, testified by video on the same day. On 28 September a Canadian lawyer, Joel Goberman, explained the meaning of Canada’s citizenship oath.

Two Legal Teams From Trinidad

Both sides hired senior lawyers from Trinidad and Tobago. Stuart Young, a former prime minister of that country, leads the petitioners’ team.

Young said the question put again and again was why the two men kept Canadian citizenship while seeking to serve Vincentians. “He chooses to hold a Canadian passport,” Young told reporters.

Anand Ramlogan, a former attorney general of Trinidad and Tobago, leads the defence. He called Canada’s oath “symbolic” and said Friday had never hidden his dual citizenship.

The Bills Waiting in Parliament

In April 2026 the government tabled two bills to “clarify what is a foreign power or state”, in Friday’s words. One would amend the Constitution and the other the election law.

Friday said the bills would go to a parliamentary committee for public input. iWitness News reported that the government would not pass them before the petitions are decided. The opposition called the bills an insurance policy against the petitions.

Young raised them in court, saying that if a change is not necessary, “that becomes a question”.

What Happens Next

Hearings were set to continue on 30 September, with more expert witnesses. Young said the evidence should close this week, after which both sides return for closing arguments.

The court has not set a date for its judgment. Friday said on 28 September that his side respects the court and is “confident about the case”.

What It Means for Residents and Investors

The case matters beyond two seats, because many Vincentians live abroad. The ruling will show whether a second citizenship is compatible with a seat in Parliament.

For investors, the NDP’s majority is wide, and it would keep 12 of 15 seats even if both men lost theirs. The larger question is continuity at the top, which the judge’s ruling will settle in its own time.

More: Caribbean news, every day from The Rio Times.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is the prime minister of St. Vincent in court?

Two defeated opposition candidates say Prime Minister Godwin Friday and minister Dwight Fitzgerald Bramble were not qualified to stand in November 2025. They argue that Canadian citizenship is allegiance to a foreign state under Section 26 of the Constitution.

Who won the 2025 election in St. Vincent and the Grenadines?

Godwin Friday’s New Democratic Party won 14 of 15 seats on 27 November 2025. Ralph Gonsalves of the Unity Labour Party became opposition leader.

When will the court rule on the dual citizenship case?

No date has been set. Evidence was expected to close in the week of 28 September 2026, followed by closing arguments from both sides.

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What is the background to St. Vincent Election Petition?

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Friday's New Democratic Party won 14 of 15 seats in 2025; the case could decide whether he and Bramble keep their seats (iWitness News).

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Sources: iWitness News · iWitness News · iWitness News · iWitness News · Constitution of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, 1979 (Georgetown University PDBA)