Former Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister and Senior Counsel Stuart Young has taken a central role in a St. Vincent and the Grenadines election petition case, cross-examining Prime Minister Dr. Godwin Friday and Foreign Affairs Minister Dwight Fitzgerald Bramble over their Canadian citizenship.
Friday and Bramble took the witness stand at the High Court in Kingstown on September 29, where they faced questions about their dual Vincentian-Canadian citizenship and their eligibility to sit in Parliament. The proceedings are being heard before High Court Justice Gertel Thom.
Young leads the legal team representing petitioners Carlos Williams and Luke Browne, unsuccessful Unity Labour Party candidates in the November 2025 general election. The petitions challenge the parliamentary eligibility of Friday and Bramble, who are respondents in the case.
During cross-examination, Young’s questioning focused heavily on why the two parliamentarians retained Canadian citizenship and passports while serving in elected office in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
Speaking to reporters following the hearing, Young said the issue of why the respondents had not renounced their Canadian citizenship was among the matters that could become important when the court considers the petitions.
Young said there had been opportunities to renounce Canadian citizenship and questioned why the respondents chose to retain it while seeking to serve the Vincentian public. He stressed, however, that the evidence must first conclude before the parties make their closing submissions and the judge delivers a decision.
Young also said his questioning touched on bills placed before Parliament concerning the constitutional provisions at the centre of the dispute.
The petitions arose following the November 27, 2025 general election. Williams challenged Friday’s election in the Northern Grenadines, while Browne challenged Bramble’s election in East Kingstown. The petitioners argue that their Canadian citizenship affects their eligibility under Section 26 of the Constitution. Friday and Bramble are contesting that interpretation.
The respondents’ legal team is led by another Trinidadian Senior Counsel, Anand Ramlogan, making the constitutional case notable in Trinidad and Tobago as Young leads the challenge while Ramlogan leads the defence.
