United Bermuda Party

The United Bermuda Party (UBP) was a political party in Bermuda, which represented itself as centrist party with a moderate social and fiscal agenda. The party held power in Bermuda's House of Assembly continuously from 1968 to 1998, the 47-year-old party was dissolved on 30 June 2011 after the majority of its members joined the One Bermuda Alliance. History Foundation and government, 1964-1998 The United Bermuda Party was founded on 21 August 1964, by 24 members of Bermuda's Parliament, following the formation of the Progressive Labour Party the previous year. Sir Henry Tucker became the leader of the new party. The party won 30 of the 40 seats at the 1968 election and formed the first government and Tucker was appointed Bermuda's first Premier. under Bermuda's new constitution and universal adult suffrage. The party was loosely modelled on the UK's Conservative Party. From 1968 until 1998, the UBP won 8 straight elections. The 1970s saw the UBP majority in Parliament decline as the PLP grew in strength. This trend was halted when Sir John Swan became party leader and Premier on 15 January 1982. Under Swan's leadership, the second black man to lead the party, the UBP control of Parliament strengthened at the 1983 and 1985 elections (where it reached an all-time high of 31 seats), though this trend ended at the 1989 election.