Botswana Democratic Party
The Botswana Democratic Party (abbr. BDP) is the governing party in Botswana. Its chairman is the Vice-President of Botswana, Slumber Tsogwane, and its symbol is a lift jack. The party has ruled Botswana continuously since gaining independence from the United Kingdom in 1966. The BDP is sometimes classified as a paternalistic conservative party and is also a consultative member of the Socialist International since 2014, which is a group including many worldwide social-democratic parties.
Botswana Democratic Party | |
|---|---|
| Abbreviation | BDP |
| Chairman | Slumber Tsogwane |
| President of Botswana | Mokgweetsi Masisi |
| Vice President of Botswana | Slumber Tsogwane |
| Speaker of the National Assembly | Phandu Skelemani |
| Leader of the House | Slumber Tsogwane |
| Founder | Seretse Khama |
| Founded | November 1961 |
| Headquarters | Tsholetsa House, Gaborone |
| Ideology | Paternalistic conservatism |
| Political position | Centre to centre-right |
| International affiliation | Socialist International (consultative) |
| Africa affiliation | FLMSA |
| Colours | Red Black White |
| Slogan | Tsholetsa Domkrag |
| National Assembly | 38 / 65 |
| Pan African Parliament | 5 / 5
|
| Party flag | |
| Website | |
| bdp.org.bw | |
The BDP was primarily shaped by two of its founders, Sir Seretse Khama and Quett Ketumile Masire. Traditional Setswana communities make up the party's base, which has led the BDP to remain a conservative movement.
In the 2019 Parliamentary elections, the BDP took 38 seats, giving it continued control of the chamber.