Norman Saunders

Hon. Norman Benjamin Saunders Sr. (born 27 October 1943) is a Turks and Caicos Islander former politician who served as the 3rd Chief Minister of the Turks and Caicos Islands from 4 November 1980 to 28 March 1985. Saunders is also the longest-serving Member of the House of Assembly in the Turks and Caicos Islands, nearing 50 years of service, the first Chief Minister to win consecutive elections in 1980 and 1984, the only politician in the nation to win as an independent candidate, and the first Leader of the Opposition. In the first election, the Saunders-led PNO secured the most votes, reflecting Saunders' strong public support.

Initial political career

In 1967, Saunders was elected as a Member of the Legislative Council for South Caicos under the Progressive National Party at the age of 23, making him the youngest elected official at the time.

In 1976, after a 5–4–2 result in the election, and the two independent candidates siding with the People's Democratic Movement, Saunders became the first Leader of the Opposition in the Turks and Caicos Islands.

However, after 4 years, Saunders lead the Progressive National party to an 8–3 victory which resulted in the party getting re-elected as the government in 1985. At this point, Saunders led the party to both the largest mandate, and the first consecutive victory in the nation, which has only happened two other times in history.

Father of Turks and Caicos Tourism Saunders is recognised as the "Father of Tourism in the Turks and Caicos Islands", having played a pivotal role in laying the foundation for the nation's tourism industry in the 1970s. In 1969, following a decision by the Legislative Assembly to explore alternative industries to reduce financial reliance on the British Government, Saunders and John Wainwright were selected to undertake a regional research tour to study successful tourism models. They visited The Bahamas, the Cayman Islands, Barbados, the British Virgin Islands, and Martinique. The pair submitted a report recommending that the Turks and Caicos Islands pursue tourism development, citing its potential to generate new government revenue and create employment opportunities.

The House of Assembly accepted the report and subsequently established the Turks and Caicos Tourist Board in 1970, appointing Saunders as its first Executive Chairman. After a year of continued research and engagement with leading tourism experts, Hon. Saunders ultimately decided that the Turks and Caicos Islands should specifically pursue a high-end tourism model, which would allow for sustainable growth with a smaller volume of visitors and less impact on local infrastructure and ecology. At a special meeting in Grand Turk, the public strongly urged the selection of a leader before the upcoming election. Initially expected to be a contest between Saunders and Francis, the latter withdrew his nomination, stating that Saunders had “everything to make an able leader of the party.” This led to unanimous support for Saunders as the Progressive National Organization's first leader.

Later political career After completing his prison sentence, in January 1995, Saunders was elected back to the Legislative Council as an independent candidate representing South Caicos South. Saunders wife, Emily, represented the South Caicos North seat.

In 2003, Saunders ran as a member of the Progressive National Party which formed the government.

In 2007, Saunders was a part of, at the time, the largest mandate in the Turks and Caicos Islands' House of Assembly history, when the Progressive National Party won 13-2 seats.

Saunders ran as a member of the Progressive National Party and held his seat upon retirement in 2016.

Norman B. Saunders Sr. International Airport On 24 May 2024, the Turks and Caicos Islands Airports Authority (TCIAA) honoured the legacy of Saunders with a ceremony marking the official renaming of the South Caicos International Airport to the Norman B. Saunders Sr. International Airport. The renaming recognized Saunders’ decades of public service, particularly his pivotal role in shaping the nation's tourism sector and championing the development of South Caicos. Speaking at the ceremony, Hon. Saunders reflected on his contributions and highlighted South Caicos’ growing importance in the country's tourism sector, stating:

“Tourism is the breadbasket of this country... and we all believe that South Caicos will be the next big spot. It will be the next future area for tourism. I trust that this place will be a gateway to South Caicos and to some of the other islands.”

On 15 March 2025, American Airlines' inaugural direct flight from Miami to South Caicos (Flight AA 3815) landed at the Norman B. Saunders Sr. International Airport. Hon. Saunders brought remarks at the event stating,"South Caicos is seeing a new day today, and I'm proud to be in the midst of it... But I would like to remind the audience that this is not the first international flight for South Caicos. We’ve had Southeastern Airlines fly here many, many years ago when there was only one international airport in the whole Turks and Caicos Islands. So, this is a return to our past days.

But truly, we are looking forward to a bright and prosperous future because I think this flight, and others that will follow, will do a lot to boost the economy of South Caicos. So, we take this opportunity to welcome all of you here. We hope you enjoy this day, and we trust that you will cooperate with the government and all other entities within the country that will be boosting tourism.

We want to do it right. That was what I told the Premier several weeks ago. We don't want to mess it up... so all of us have a responsibility to do what is right to make sure we control what is happening."