Politics of the Falkland Islands the Falkland Islanders gained British citizenship under the British Nationality (Falkland Islands) Act 1983, and on 3 October 1985 the Constitution of the Falkland Islands was established. A new constitution came into force on 1 January 2009 which modernised the Chapter on fundamental rights and freedoms of the individual, embedding self-determination in the main body of the constitution. The new constitution also replaced the Legislative Council with the Legislative Assembly, and better explained the role of the Governor and the Chief Executive. The Argentine Republic claims the Falkland Islands (known in Spanish as "Islas Malvinas") to be part of its
1977 Falkland Islands general election 1977 Falkland Islands general election The Falkland Islands general election of 1977 was held on Thursday 6 October 1977 to elect members to the Legislative Council. Six Councillors were elected through universal suffrage, one from each constituency. The election took place just over a year after the last so that the changes to the Legislative Council under the new constitution could be implemented. The new constitution, which came into force under "Falkland Islands (Legislative Council) (Amendment) Order 1977", abolished the remaining appointed members Councillors and increased the number of elected Councillors to six. The constitution also created three new constituencies