Governor-General of the Bahamas

Governor-General of the Bahamas
Coat of arms of the Bahamas
Flag of the Governor-General
Incumbent Sir Cornelius A. Smith since 28 June 2019
Style	His Excellency
Residence	Government House, The Bahamas
Appointer	Monarch of the Bahamas
Term length	At Her Majesty's pleasure
Formation	10 July 1973
First holder	Sir John Paul
Salary	37,000 BSD annually[1]
Website	www.bahamas.gov.bs

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The Governor-General of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas is the representative of the Bahamian monarch (currently Queen Elizabeth II). As The Queen cannot reside in all her realms, she appoints representatives to carry out her duties as Queen of the Bahamas. Governors-General serve their term at Her Majesty's pleasure, usually five years. They are responsible for appointing the Prime Minister, as well as other government ministers after consultation with the Prime Minister.

The institution of the Governor-General was established in 1973, when the Bahamas became an independent realm.

Government House in Nassau is the official residence of governors-general. The current Governor-General is Sir Cornelius A. Smith.

List of governors-general of the Bahamas[]

Following is a list of people who have served as Governor-General of the Bahamas since independence in 1973.

Symbols

No.	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Term of office			Monarch (Reign)
			Took office	Left office	Time in office
1		Sir John Paul (1916–2004)	10 July 1973	31 July 1973	21 days	Elizabeth II (1973–present)
2		Sir Milo Butler (1906–1979)	1 August 1973	22 January 1979[†]	5 years, 174 days
–		Doris Sands Johnson (1921–1983) Acting Governor-General	22 January 1979	22 January 1979	0 days
–		Sir Gerald Cash (1917–2003) Acting Governor-General	22 January 1979	23 September 1979	244 days
3		Sir Gerald Cash (1917–2003)	23 September 1979	25 June 1988	8 years, 276 days
–		Sir Henry Milton Taylor (1903–1994) Acting Governor-General	26 June 1988	28 February 1991	2 years, 247 days
4		Sir Henry Milton Taylor (1903–1994)	28 February 1991	1 January 1992	307 days
5		Sir Clifford Darling (1922–2011)	2 January 1992	2 January 1995	3 years, 0 days
6		Sir Orville Turnquest (b. 1929)	3 January 1995	13 November 2001	6 years, 314 days
–		Dame Ivy Dumont (b. 1930) Acting Governor-General	13 November 2001	1 January 2002	49 days
7		Dame Ivy Dumont (b. 1930)	1 January 2002	30 November 2005	3 years, 333 days
–		Paul Adderley (1928–2012) Acting Governor-General	1 December 2005	1 February 2006	62 days
8		Arthur Dion Hanna (1928–2021)	1 February 2006	14 April 2010	4 years, 72 days
9		Sir Arthur Foulkes (b. 1928)	14 April 2010	8 July 2014	4 years, 85 days
10		Dame Marguerite Pindling (b. 1932)	8 July 2014	28 June 2019	4 years, 355 days
11		Sir Cornelius A. Smith (b. 1937)	28 June 2019	Incumbent	2 years, 233 days

See also[]

• List of governors of the Bahamas
• List of prime ministers of the Bahamas

References[]

• Georgetown University