The premier of Newfoundland and Labrador is current title of the

first minister A first minister is any of a variety of leaders of government cabinets. The term literally has the same meaning as "prime minister" but is typically chosen to distinguish the office-holder from a superior prime minister. Currently the title of ' ...

for the

Canadian province Canada has ten provinces and three territories that are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Constitution of Canada, Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North Amer ...

Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the populatio ...

, which was at certain points in its history a colony, dominion, and province. The province had a system of

responsible government Responsible government is a conception of a system of government that embodies the principle of parliamentary accountability, the foundation of the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy. Governments (the equivalent of the executive br ...

from 1855 to 1934, and again since 1949. Newfoundland became a British

crown colony A Crown colony or royal colony was a colony governed by Kingdom of England, England, and then Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain or the United Kingdom within the English overseas possessions, English and later British Empire. There was usua ...

in 1855, in 1907 it became a

dominion A dominion was any of several largely self-governance, self-governing countries of the British Empire, once known collectively as the ''British Commonwealth of Nations''. Progressing from colonies, their degrees of self-governing colony, colon ...

, and in 1949, it became a province and joined

Canadian Confederation Canadian Confederation () was the process by which three British North American provinces—the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick—were united into one federation, called the Name of Canada#Adoption of Dominion, Dominion of Ca ...

. Since then, the province has been a part of the Canadian federation and has kept its own legislature to deal with provincial matters. The province was named Newfoundland and Labrador on December 6, 2001. The province has a unicameral Westminster-style

parliamentary government A parliamentary system, or parliamentary democracy, is a form of government where the head of government (chief executive) derives their democratic legitimacy from their ability to command the support ("confidence") of a majority of the legisl ...

, in which the premier is the leader of the party that controls the most seats in the

House of Assembly House of Assembly is a name given to the legislature or lower house of a bicameral parliament. In some countries this may be at a subnational level. Historically, in British Crown colonies as the colony gained more internal responsible g ...

. The premier is Newfoundland and Labrador's

head of government In the Executive (government), executive branch, the head of government is the highest or the second-highest official of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presid ...

, and the

king of Canada The monarchy of Canada is Canada's Government#Forms, form of government embodied by the Canadian sovereign and head of state. It is one of the key components of Canadian sovereignty and sits at the core of Canadian federalism, Canada's cons ...

is its

head of state A head of state is the public persona of a sovereign state.#Foakes, Foakes, pp. 110–11 "

he head of state He or HE may refer to: Language * He (letter), the fifth letter of the Semitic abjads * He (pronoun), a pronoun in Modern English * He (kana), one of the Japanese kana (へ in hiragana and ヘ in katakana) * Ge (Cyrillic), a Cyrillic letter cal ...

being an embodiment of the State itself or representative of its international persona." The name given to the office of head of sta ...

and is represented by the

lieutenant governor of Newfoundland and Labrador The lieutenant governor of Newfoundland and Labrador () is the representative in Newfoundland and Labrador of the monarch, who operates distinctly within the province but is also shared equally with the ten other jurisdictions of Canada. The li ...

. The premier picks a cabinet from the elected members to form the Executive Council of Newfoundland and Labrador, and presides over that body. Members are first elected to the House during

general elections 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-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections ...

. General elections must be conducted every four years from the date of the last election. An election may also take place if the governing party loses the confidence of the legislature by the defeat of a supply bill or tabling of a confidence motion. From 1855 to 1907, the position of first minister was known as

premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of govern ...

. After the colony was granted dominion status, the position became known as prime minister. Democratic government was suspended in 1934 and replaced by an appointed

Commission of Government The Commission of Government was a non-elected body that governed the Dominion of Newfoundland from 1934 to 1949. Established following the collapse of Newfoundland's economy during the Great Depression, it was dissolved when the dominion became ...

, until 1949 Newfoundland became a province of Canada. Since the reinstitution of democratic government in 1949, the title of first minister has been premier. Since 1855, Newfoundland and Labrador has been led by ten Colonial premiers, nine Dominion prime ministers, three chairmen of Commission of Government, and fourteen provincial premiers. Of the provincial premiers, seven are from the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

, and seven are from the Progressive Conservative Party.

Colonial Premiers of Newfoundland (1855–1907)

Dominion Prime Ministers of Newfoundland (1907–1934)

Royal Proclamation A proclamation (Lat. ''proclamare'', to make public by announcement) is an official declaration issued by a person of authority to make certain announcements known. Proclamations are currently used within the governing framework of some nations ...

, the colony was granted

status on 26 September 1907 becoming the

Dominion of Newfoundland Newfoundland was a British dominion in eastern North America, today the modern Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It included the island of Newfoundland, and Labrador on the continental mainland. Newfoundland was one of the orig ...

with its head of government being given the title Prime Minister of the Dominion of Newfoundland.

Chairmen of the Commission of Government (1934–1949)

With the suspension of

the

was administered by the

, from 1934 to 1949. It was a body of seven appointed by the British government, made up of three British officials, three Newfoundlanders, and chaired by the Governor of Newfoundland.

Provincial Premiers of Newfoundland (1949–2001) and Newfoundland and Labrador (2001–present)

References

;General * * ;Specific {{DEFAULTSORT:List Of Premiers Of Newfoundland And Labrador

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...

* *

Premiers Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

Colonial Premiers of Newfoundland (1855–1907)

Dominion Prime Ministers of Newfoundland (1907–1934)

Chairmen of the Commission of Government (1934–1949)

Provincial Premiers of Newfoundland (1949–2001) and Newfoundland and Labrador (2001–present)

See also

References