Ralph Gonsalves
| Dr. Ralph Gonsalves | |
|---|---|
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Dr. Ralph Gonsalves in 2013
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| Prime Minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | |
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Assumed office 28 March 2001 |
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| Monarch | Elizabeth II |
| Governor General |
Charles Antrobus Monica Dacon (Acting) Frederick Ballantyne |
| Deputy | Louis Straker |
| Preceded by | Arnhim Eustace |
| Leader of the Unity Labour Party | |
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Assumed office 6 December 1998 |
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| Preceded by | Vincent Beache |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
8 August 1946 Colonarie, British Windward Islands (now Saint Vincent and the Grenadines) |
| Political party | Unity Labour Party |
| Spouse(s) | Eloise Harris |
| Alma mater |
University of the West Indies University of Manchester Inns of Court School of Law |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
Ralph Everard Gonsalves (born 8 August 1946) is a Vincentian politician. He currently serves as the 4th Prime Minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and leader of the Unity Labour Party (ULP).
He became Prime Minister after his party won a majority government in the 2001 general election. He is the first Prime Minister from the newly constructed ULP, following a merger of the Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Labour Party and the Movement for National Unity.
Gonsalves has been Member of Parliament (MP) for the constituency of North Central Windward since 1994. In 1994, upon the formation of the Unity Labour Party he became deputy leader, and became leader of the party in 1998.
Gonsalves' ULP won another majority government in 2005 general election, winning 12 seats. On 13 December 2010, Gonsalves' ULP was re-elected, showing a decrease in the popular vote and winning 8 seats. On 9 December 2015, Gonsalves managed to retain all 8 seats from the previous election while creating history in the Caribbean by increasing overall popular vote.
Gonsalves, known affectionately as "Comrade Ralph", was born in Colonarie, Saint Vincent, British Windward Islands to his father, Alban Gonsalves (a farmer and small businessman, now deceased) and his mother, Theresa Francis (a small business woman). His foreparents came to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in 1845 as indentured servants from the Portuguese-ruled island of Madeira, some 300 kilometers off the north-west coast of Morocco in North West Africa.
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