Chester Cooper

Isaac Chester Cooper (born 29 July 1970)^{[citation needed]} is a Bahamian Progressive Liberal Party politician serving as Deputy Prime Minister of the Bahamas to Philip Davis and Minister of Tourism and Aviation since September 2021.^[1] He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for The Exumas and Ragged Island since 2017.

Chester Cooper
Deputy Prime Minister of the Bahamas
Incumbent
Assumed office 17 September 2021
Prime Minister	Philip Davis
Preceded by	Desmond Bannister
Minister of Tourism and Aviation
Incumbent
Assumed office 17 September 2021
Preceded by	Dionisio D'Aguilar
Member of Parliament for The Exumas and Ragged Island
Incumbent
Assumed office 2017
Preceded by	Anthony Moss
Personal details
Born	(1970-07-29) 29 July 1970 (age 54)[citation needed] Forbes Hill, Exuma, The Bahamas
Spouse	Cecelia Cooper
Children	3
Alma mater	Acadia University Nova Southeastern University Harvard University

Early life

Cooper was born and raised in Forbes Hill, Little Exuma, the youngest of 12 children to the Reverends Eulon and Louise Cooper. His father passed away when he was 5.^[2] He graduated with a Master of Business Administration in Accounting and Finance from Nova Southeastern University in 1995.

Career

Before going into politics, Cooper worked in finance. He became the Chairman and CEO of BAF Global Group and President and CEO of BAF Financial & Insurance Ltd.

In November 2016, Cooper was ratified as the PLP candidate for The Exumas and Ragged Island in the 2017 general election. He was one of four PLP candidates to win or retain their seat that election. Whilst in Opposition, he became Deputy Leader of the PLP to Leader Philip Davis. As the PLP won the 2021 general election, it was confirmed Cooper would remain in his post and was sworn in as Deputy Prime Minister. He was also appointed Minister of Tourism, Investment, and Aviation.^[3]

Personal life

He is married to Cecillia; they have three children. He selects a charity a year to donate his MP salary to.^[4]