Loretta Butler-Turner is a Bahamian mortician and politician. She was 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 Bahamian Parliament from December 2016 to May 2017.

Early life

Loretta Butler-Turner was born in

Nassau, Bahamas Nassau ( ) is the capital and largest city of The Bahamas. It is on the island of New Providence, which had a population of 246,329 in 2010, or just over 70% of the entire population of The Bahamas. As of April 2023, the preliminary results of ...

to Rose Marie (née Taylor) and Raleigh Butler, who was the son of the first Bahamian Governor-General,

Sir Milo Butler Sir Milo Boughton Butler (11 August 190622 January 1979) was a The Bahamas, Bahamian politician who served as the second governor-general of the Bahamas from 1973 to 1979. He died in office, aged 72. Early life and family Butler was born in Na ...

. She attended primary and secondary school at St. Andrews School in Nassau and was the first Bahamian female to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in mortuary sciences, graduating

summa cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...

from the New England Institute of Mortuary Science.

Mortuary career

Butler became an embalmer and mortuary director in her father's business, Butlers’ Funeral Homes and Crematorium of Nassau. She has provided services for several notable deaths, particularly for singer

Aaliyah Aaliyah Dana Haughton ( ; January 16, 1979 – August 25, 2001) was an American singer, actress, dancer, and model. Known as the " Princess of R&B" and "Queen of Urban Pop", she is credited with helping to redefine contemporary R&B, p ...

and TV personality Daniel Wayne Smith (son of

Anna Nicole Smith Vickie Lynn Marshall (née Hogan; November 28, 1967 – February 8, 2007), known professionally as Anna Nicole Smith, was an American model, actress, and television personality. Smith started her career as a ''Playboy'' magazine centerfold in M ...

Political career

In 2007, she was elected to parliament for the Montagu Constituency as a member of the

Free National Movement The Free National Movement (abbreviated FNM) is a political party in the Bahamas formed in the early 1970s and led by Sir Cecil Wallace-Whitfield. The current leader of the party is Michael Pintard and the current deputy leader is Shanendon C ...

(FNM) party and appointed Minister of State for Social Development.

Inter-American Commission of Women

Butler served as Vice President of the

Inter-American Commission of Women The Inter-American Commission of Women (, , ), abbreviated CIM, is an organization that falls within the Organization of American States. It was established in 1928 by the Sixth Pan-American Conference and is composed of one female representative ...

from 2009 to 2011, completing the term of

Jeanette Carrillo Madrigal Jeanette, Jeannette or Jeanetta may refer to: * Jeanette (given name), a given name (including a list of people and fictional characters with the name) Places * Jeannette, Ontario, Canada * Jeannette Runciman Island, Ontario, Canada * Jeanne ...

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

who had resigned.

Deputy Leader

In 2012, Butler-Taylor ran for the Long Island seat and was elected succeeding Lawrence Cartwright. That same year, she was chosen as the Deputy Leader of the Free National Movement. Butler ran for the party leadership in 2014 but was defeated by Hubert Minnis. ( Peter Turnquest replaced her as Deputy Leader.) Finally, in December 2016, Butler-Turner was sworn in as the first woman

in the Bahamas history. Four days later, Butler came under fire from her predecessor, Hubert Minnis, who vowed to have her leadership rescinded.

Ouster from Party

In April 2017, she was thrown out of the party and ran as an independent in the general election the following month. She received less than 300 votes, thus ending her parliamentary career.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Butler-Turner, Loretta Living people Funeral directors People from Nassau, Bahamas Free National Movement politicians 21st-century Bahamian women politicians 21st-century Bahamian politicians Members of the House of Assembly of the Bahamas Year of birth missing (living people) Politicians affected by a party expulsion process Women opposition leaders Leaders of the opposition (Bahamas)