Speaker of the House of Commons (United Kingdom) and 2005. At the 2010 general election, Speaker John Bercow faced ten opponents, including Nigel Farage, former leader of UKIP, who obtained 17.4% of the vote, and John Stevens, from the Buckinghamshire Campaign for Democracy party, who obtained 21.4%. Bercow won with 47% of the vote. The Speaker's primary function is to preside over the House of Commons. Traditionally, the Speaker when presiding wore court dress—a black coat with white shirt and bands, beneath a black gown, with stockings and buckled shoes, and a full-bottomed wig. But in 1992 Betty Boothroyd, the first female Speaker, eschewed the wig. Her successor,
Speaker of the House of Assembly of Dominica Speaker of the House of Assembly of Dominica The Speaker of the House of Assembly of Dominica is responsible for the management and general administration of the House, ensuring that rules of procedure are followed. The Speaker is elected by the House of Assembly at its first sitting after a general election. A member of the House who is elected as Speaker can only vote to break ties (a casting vote). If someone outside the membership of the House is elected as Speaker, they become a member, but cannot cast an original or casting vote. Louis Cools-Lartigue, OBE, was Speaker