Keith Claudius Mitchell (born 12 November 1946) is a Grenadian politician who served as

Prime Minister of Grenada This is a list of Head of government, heads of government of Grenada, from the establishment of the office of the chief minister in 1960 to the present day. List of officeholders ;Political parties ;Other affiliations ;Symbols Died in ...

from 1995 to 2008 and from 2013 to 2022. He is the longest-serving Prime Minister in Grenadian history, holding the office for more than 22 years. He was leader of the New National Party (NNP) from 1989 until 2024 and has been the

Leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the Opposition (parliamentary), largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the ...

in the

House of Representatives of Grenada The House of Representatives of Grenada is the lower chamber of the country's bicameral parliament. Together with the upper chamber, the Senate, it meets in the New Houses of Parliament in the capital St. George's. The House of Representativ ...

from 2008 to 2013, and again from 2022 to 2025.

Education and personal life

Keith Claudius Mitchell was born in the community of Brizan, Saint George. Mitchell graduated from

The University of the West Indies The University of the West Indies (UWI), originally University College of the West Indies, is a public university system established to serve the Tertiary education, higher education needs of the residents of 18 English-speaking Country, cou ...

with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

degree in mathematics and chemistry in 1971. He gained a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

from

Howard University Howard University is a private, historically black, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity" and accredited by the Mid ...

in 1975 and a

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...

in mathematics and statistics from

American University The American University (AU or American) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Its main campus spans 90-acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, in the Spri ...

in 1979. He then worked as a statistician at Applied Management Sciences, providing statistical support to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. In 1984, Mitchell gave up his professional activities to return home to Grenada after the U.S. invasion.

Cricket career

Mitchell was a

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

er, a

spin bowler Spin bowling is a bowling technique in cricket, in which the ball is delivered relatively slowly but with rapid rotation, giving it the potential to deviate sharply after bouncing. A bowler who uses this technique is called a spinner, a spin b ...

who captained the Grenada team in 1973. He has since been a prominent cricket administrator in the West Indies alongside his political career.

Political career

In the December 1984 general election, Mitchell was elected to a seat in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

from St. George North West constituency and he has held the seat in each subsequent election. Mitchell was elected as leader of the NNP in January 1989,''Political Parties of the World'' (6th edition, 2005), ed. Bogdan Szajkowski, page 265."Jul 1989 - Grenada", ''Keesing's Record of World Events'', volume 35, July 1989, Grenada, page 36,812. defeating Prime Minister

Herbert Blaize Herbert Augustus Blaize PC (26 February 1918 – 19 December 1989) was a Grenadian politician and leader of the Grenada National Party. When Grenada was still a British Crown Colony he served as the first Chief Minister from 1960 to 1961, ...

. Blaize then dismissed Mitchell from his position as Minister of Communications and Works on 21 July 1989. After the NNP was victorious in the

general election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from By-election, by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. Gener ...

held on 20 June 1995, winning eight out of 15 seats in the House of Representatives, Mitchell took office as Prime Minister, along with his Cabinet, on 22 June. Under Mitchell's leadership, the party won all 15 seats in the early election held in January 1999, and the NNP narrowly won a third term in power in the November 2003 election, reduced to a one-seat parliamentary majority. Mitchell held the additional portfolio of

Minister of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...

for three periods. The New National Party was defeated in the

held on 8 July 2008 by the National Democratic Congress (NDC), winning only four seats against 11 for the NDC. Mitchell himself was re-elected to his seat from St. George North West. NDC leader

Tillman Thomas Tillman Joseph Thomas, CBE (born 13 June 1947"Grenada has a new Prime Min ...

succeeded Mitchell as Prime Minister on 9 July. Mitchell said that the people voted for change and congratulated Thomas. Following the election, he continued as NNP leader and was sworn in as Leader of the Opposition on 16 July 2008. In the February 2013 general election, the NNP again won all 15 parliamentary seats. After this resounding victory, Mitchell was sworn in as Prime Minister on 20 February 2013. Looking ahead to the next election, Mitchell predicted that his party could win all 15 seats in parliament for a third time. Mitchell and his New National Party created history by retaining all 15 seats in the Grenada General Election of 13 March 2018. It is the first time any political party regionally or otherwise has achieved such a feat. Mitchell held the additional portfolio of

until 2020. In June 2022, Mitchell called a snap general election. His New National Party was defeated by the National Democratic Congress under

Dickon Mitchell Dickon Amiss Thomas Mitchell (born 8 October 1977) is a Grenadian politician and attorney serving as the prime minister of Grenada since 24 June 2022 and the leader of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) since 2021. He led his party to vict ...

(no relation), winning just 6 seats to the NDC's 9. Mitchell subsequently became

in the

. Ahead of the 2024 national convention of the NNP, Mitchell announced that he would not seek re-election as leader, stepping back after over 35 years in the role. He was succeeded as leader by

Emmalin Pierre Emmalin Celina Pierre (born 23 August 1975) is a Grenadian politician who has been leader of the New National Party (Grenada), New National Party since 2024 and a member of the Parliament of Grenada, Grenadian parliament since 2003, first servi ...

. Mitchell subsequently resigned as Leader of the Opposition on 21 February 2025, recommending Pierre as his successor.

Foreign policy

In 1997, Mitchell became the first prime minister since

Maurice Bishop Maurice Rupert Bishop (29 May 1944 – 19 October 1983) was a Grenada, Grenadian revolutionary and the leader of the New Jewel Movement (NJM) – a Marxist–Leninist party that sought to prioritise socio-economic development, education and bla ...

to visit

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

, signing an economic cooperation agreement. He re-established relations with the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

in 2005. Mitchell approved 1996 plans by the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and Admiralty law, law enforcement military branch, service branch of the armed forces of the United States. It is one of the country's eight Uniformed services ...

to build a base on

Petite Martinique Petite Martinique ( ) is one of the islands of Carriacou and Petite Martinique, which is part of Grenada. It is 4 km ( miles) away from Carriacou. With its and population of 900, it is smaller than Carriacou. Petite Martinique comprises ab ...

. He allowed medical visits from USNS Comfort (T-AH-20).

Honours and awards

Recipient of the

Order of José Martí The Order of José Martí () is a state honor in Cuba. The Order was named so after José Martí, the national hero of Cuba. The design was realized by the Cuban sculptor José Delarra. Notable recipients * Mahathir Mohamad, Prime Minister of ...

References

External links

"Biography: Keith Claudius Mitchell"
Official website of the government of Grenada.
Profile
at

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

Interview
with ''Global: the international briefing'' (2015) , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchell, Keith 1946 births American University alumni Grenadian Roman Catholics Living people Members of the House of Representatives of Grenada Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom New National Party (Grenada) politicians People from St. George's, Grenada Former United States citizens Prime ministers of Grenada Republicanism in Grenada Finance ministers of Grenada Ministers of foreign affairs of Grenada University of the West Indies alumni 20th-century Grenadian politicians 21st-century Grenadian politicians