The Government of Haiti - CountriesPedia

Haiti - Government

Based on the etymolgy of Haiti, it was the native Taino name means "Land of High Mountains" and was originally applied to the entire island of Hispaniola. The Government system in this country is the semi-presidential republic type and the different Administrative divisions includes: 10 departments (departements, singular - departement); Artibonite, Centre, Grand'Anse, Nippes, Nord, Nord-Est, Nord-Ouest, Ouest, Sud, Sud-Est

National symbols

Hispaniolan trogon (bird), hibiscus flower; national colors: blue, red.

The flag

The National flag of Haiti has two equal horizontal bands of blue (top) and red with a centered white rectangle bearing the coat of arms, which contains a palm tree flanked by flags and two cannons above a scroll bearing the motto L'UNION FAIT LA FORCE (Union Makes Strength); the colors are taken from the French Tricolor and represent the union of blacks and mulattoes.

The National Anthem

Title	"La Dessalinienne" (The Dessalines Song)
Lyric/music	Justin LHERISSON/Nicolas GEFFRARD

note: adopted 1904; named for Jean-Jacques DESSALINES, a leader in the Haitian Revolution and first ruler of an independent Haiti

More about the government of Haiti

Constitution
Date of Independence	1 January 1804 (from France)
National holiday	Independence Day, 1 January (1804)
Legal system	civil law system strongly influenced by Napoleonic Code
International law organization participation	accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction; non-party state to the ICCt
History	Many previous; latest adopted 10 March 1987, with substantial revisions in June 2012; note – the constitution is commonly referred to as the “amended 1987 constitution”
Amendments	Proposed by the executive branch or by either the Senate or the Chamber of Deputies; consideration of proposed amendments requires support by at least two-thirds majority of both houses; passage requires at least two-thirds majority of the membership present and at least two-thirds majority of the votes cast; approved amendments enter into force after installation of the next president of the republic; constitutional articles on the democratic and republican form of government cannot be amended; amended many times, last in 2012
Citizenship
Citizenship by birth	no
Citizenship by descent only	at least one parent must be a native-born citizen of Haiti
Dual citizenship recognized	yes
Residency requirement for naturalization	5 years
Executive Branch
Chief of state	President (vacant)
Head of government	Prime Minister Alix Didier FILS-AIMÉ (since 10 November 2024)
Cabinet	Cabinet chosen by the prime minister in consultation with the president; parliament must ratify the Cabinet and Prime Minister's governing policy
Elections/appointments	president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a single non-consecutive term); last election was 20 November 2016; new elections were delayed in 2022 and 2023 and have not been scheduled by the transitional presidential council
Election results	2016: Jovenel MOÏSE elected president in first round; percent of vote - Jovenel MOÏSE (PHTK) 55.6%, Jude CELESTIN (LAPEH) 19.6%, Jean-Charles MOÏSE (PPD) 11%, Maryse NARCISSE (FL) 9%; other 4.8% 2011: Michel MARTELLY elected president in second round; percent of vote in second round - Michel MARTELLY (Peasant's Response) 68%, Mirlande MANIGAT (RDNP) 32%
Legislative branch
Description	Bicameral National Assembly or the Assemblée nationale consists of: Senate or le Sénat de la République (30 seats; 0 filled as of January 2023); members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by absolute majority vote in 2 rounds if needed; members serve 6-year terms (2-term limit) with one-third of the membership renewed every 2 years) Chamber of Deputies or Chambre des députés (119 seats; 0 filled as of January 2023; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by absolute majority vote in 2 rounds if needed; members serve 4-year terms; no term limits)
Elections	Senate - last held on 20 November 2016 with a runoff on 29 January 2017 (next originally scheduled for 27 October 2019 but postponed until political and civil society actors agree to a consensual process) Chamber of Deputies - last held on 9 August 2015 with runoff on 25 October 2015 and 20 November 2016 (next originally scheduled for 27 October 2019 but postponed until political and civil society actors agree to a consensual process)
Election results	Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; composition - NA Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; composition - NA
Judicial branch
Highest court(s)	Supreme Court or Cour de cassation (currently 11 of 12 judges as prescribed by the constitution, 8 of whom were appointed in March 2023); note - Haiti is a member of the Caribbean Court of Justice; Constitutional Court, called for in the 1987 constitution but not yet established; High Court of Justice, for trying high government officials - currently not functional
Judge selection and term of office	Judges appointed by the president from candidate lists submitted by the Senate of the National Assembly; note - Article 174 of Haiti's constitution states that judges of the Supreme Court are appointed for 10 years, whereas Article 177 states that judges of the Supreme Court are appointed for life
Subordinate courts	Courts of Appeal; Courts of First Instance; magistrate's courts; land, labor, and children's courts
Diplomatic representation in the US
Chief of mission	Ambassador (vacant); Chargé d'Affaires Louis Harold JOSEPH (since 15 May 2023)
Chancery	2311 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
Telephone	[1] (202) 332-4090
FAX	[1] (202) 745-7215
Email address and website	[email protected] https://www.haiti.org/
Consulate(s) general	Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Miami, Orlando (FL), New York
Diplomatic representation from the US
Chief of mission	Ambassador-designate Dennis HANKINS (since 14 March 2024); note - as of March 2024, Haiti has no government official to whom the Ambassador-designate can present his credentials
Embassy	Tabarre 41, Route de Tabarre, Port-au-Prince
Mailing address	3400 Port-au-Prince Place, Washington, DC 20521-3400
Telephone	[011] (509) 2229-8000
FAX	[011] (509) 2229-8027
Email address and website	[email protected] https://ht.usembassy.gov/
National heritage
Total World Heritage Sites	1 (cultural)
Selected World Heritage Site locales	National History Park – Citadel, Sans Souci, Ramiers