Country profile
Saint Barthélemy
Collectivité d'outre mer de Saint-Barthélemy
North America · Latin America and the Caribbean · Americas
BL · BLM
- Capital
- Gustavia
- Population
- 10,562
- Area
- 21 km²
- Democracy index
- 89
- Regime type
- Robust Democracy
Events
Ballots from Saint Barthélemy
The latest elections, referendums, and opinion polls from Saint Barthélemy. Community totals are not official results.
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Classification
Democracy profile
The score and regime label are assigned by Porto Voto using our in-house democracy index and classification framework, not ratings from governments or external agencies.
Democracy index
89/100
Regime type
Robust Democracy
As an overseas collectivity of France, Saint Barthélemy operates within the stable democratic framework of the French Republic. Local governance is managed by a Territorial Council that exercises a high degree of administrative autonomy under the French constitution. Political participation is characterized by local electoral competition where civil liberties and human rights are robustly protected by both national and local legal institutions. The rule of law remains firm, ensuring transparency and judicial independence, while the relatively small scale of the population facilitates high levels of community engagement and accountability, resulting in a mature and stable democratic environment.
Last evaluation:
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Country background
A concise introduction to Saint Barthélemy, together with notes on how power and law are organized, to put local ballots in context.
In 1493, Christopher COLUMBUS named Saint Barthelemy for his brother Bartolomeo, but the island was first settled by the French in 1648. In 1784, France sold the island to Sweden, which renamed the largest town Gustavia after the Swedish King GUSTAV III and made it a free port; the island prospered as a trade and supply center during the colonial wars of the 18th century. France repurchased the island in 1877 and took control the following year, placing it under the administration of Guadeloupe.
Saint Barthelemy retained its free port status along with various Swedish appellations such as Swedish street and town names, and the three-crown symbol on the coat of arms. In 2003, the islanders voted to secede from Guadeloupe, and in 2007, the island became a French overseas collectivity. In 2012, it became an overseas territory of the EU, allowing it to exert local control over the permanent and temporary immigration of foreign workers, including non-French European citizens.
Hurricane Irma hit the island in 2017 and caused extensive damage.