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People's Progressive Party (Guyana)
Encyclopedia
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
in Guyana
Guyana
Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
led by Bharrat Jagdeo
Bharrat Jagdeo
Bharrat Jagdeo is a Guyanese politician who has been President of Guyana since 11 August 1999. Prior to his presidency he was Minister of Finance and became President after Janet Jagan resigned for health reasons; subsequently he won two elections, in 2001 and 2006.Jagdeo was born in Unity Village...
. The party has been in power since the 1992 elections
Guyanese general election, 1992
General elections were held in Guyana on 5 October 1992. The first free and fair elections since 1964, they resulted in a victory for the People's Progressive Party, which won 28 of the 53 seats. Voter turnout was 80.4%.-Results:...
and currently holds 36 of the 65 seats in the National Assembly.
History
The PPP was founded on 1 January 1950, and was the first mass party in the country. It was initially a multi-ethnic party supported by workers and intellectuals. The party held its First Congress on 1 April 1951. Its Third Congress, at which Burnham unsuccessfully sought to become party leader, was held in March 1953. It went onto win the 1953 electionsBritish Guiana general election, 1953
General elections were held in British Guiana in April 1953. They were the first held under universal suffrage and resulted in a victory for the People's Progressive Party. Its leader, Cheddi Jagan, became Prime Minister....
and Cheddi Jagan
Cheddi Jagan
Cheddi Berret Jagan was a Guyanese politician who was first elected Chief Minister in 1953 and later Premier of British Guiana from 1961 to 1964, prior to independence. He later served as President of Guyana from 1992 to 1997.- Biography :The son of ethnic Indian sugar plantation workers, Jagan...
became Prime Minister. However, Jagan's radical social reforms led to the British authorities sending in troops, claiming there was the threat of a Marxist revolution. After the PPP won the 1957 elections
British Guiana general election, 1957
General elections were held in British Guiana in 1957. The result was a victory for the People's Progressive Party, whose leader, Cheddi Jagan, remained Prime Minister....
, Burnham's moderate faction left the party to establish the Afro-Guyanese dominated People's National Congress
People's National Congress
The People's National Congress is a socialist political party in Guyana led by Robert Corbin. The party currently holds 22 of the 65 seats in the National Assembly.-History:...
, establishing an ethnic divide between the two parties, with the PPP left representing Indo-Guyanese. The PPP won the 1961 elections
British Guiana general election, 1961
General elections were held in British Guiana in 1961. The result was a victory for the People's Progressive Party, whose leader Cheddi Jagan remained Prime Minister. However, the PPP had only won 1.6% more of the vote than the new People's National Congress, but had received almost double the...
by a 1.6% margin, but received almost double the number of seats, leading to serious inter-racial violence.
The party lost power in the 1964 elections
British Guiana general election, 1964
General elections were held in British Guiana on 7 December 1964. They were the first held under proportional representation, and saw the People's Progressive Party win 24 of the 53 directly-elected seats. However, the People's National Congress and United Force were able to form a coalition...
. Despite winning the most seats, the PNC was able to form a coalition government with The United Force
The United Force
The United Force is a conservative political party in Guyana. It currently has one seat in the National Assembly and is led by Manzoor Nadir.-History:...
. Following an outright PNC victory in the 1968 elections
Guyanese general election, 1968
General elections were held in Guyana on 16 December 1968. The result was a victory for the People's National Congress, which won 30 of the 53 seats, although the PNC's victory was the result of fraud as the government had direct control of the elections. Voter turnout was 85.1%.-Results:...
, the PPP remained in opposition during a series of fraudulent elections in the 1970s and 1980s. It finally returned to power in the 1992 elections
Guyanese general election, 1992
General elections were held in Guyana on 5 October 1992. The first free and fair elections since 1964, they resulted in a victory for the People's Progressive Party, which won 28 of the 53 seats. Voter turnout was 80.4%.-Results:...
. It retained power in elections in 1997, 2001 and 2006.