History of Nevis political-status debates

Sources for this page

Each number marks a specific claim. Notes give the source, its locator and how it relates to the claim.

1. 1.

   Claim: At the insistence of Nevisian representatives during pre-independence consultations, a secession clause was enshrined in the 1983 federal constitution of Saint Kitts and Nevis, permitting Nevis to secede from the federation upon a two-thirds majority vote of Nevisian citizens in a referendum.

   • 1998 Nevis independence referendum (Wikipedia) link, Constitutional secession clause section. Source record
2. 2.

   Claim: On 10 August 1998, following steps initiated in 1996 by the Nevis Island Administration under Premier Vance Amory's Concerned Citizens' Movement, Nevis held a secession referendum; on 57% turnout, 62% of voters supported secession, a majority but short of the constitutionally required two-thirds threshold, so Nevis remained part of the federation.

   • 1998 Nevis independence referendum (Wikipedia) link, Referendum result section. Source record
3. 3.

   Claim: Since the late 1990s, momentum for Nevisian secession has subsided amid a dynamic political settlement between St Kitts and Nevis; the Nevis Reformation Party (NRP), historically the strongest proponent of Nevis independence, shifted under recent leadership toward favouring constitutional reform over secession, though it did not win a seat in the 2022 general election despite a small increase in vote share.

   • Secessionism in Nevis: Why Have Tensions Eased? (Island Studies Journal) link, Tensions-easing analysis section. Source record
   • 2022 Saint Kitts and Nevis general election (Wikipedia) link, NRP 2022 performance section. Source record