Ahead of the 2026 general election in The Bahamas, newly published mandatory financial disclosures from the Tribune have pulled back the curtain on the extreme wealth of candidates vying for public office, counting more than 50 millionaires among the field of contenders. Leading the pack of ultra-wealthy hopefuls are three high-profile figures: former NBA star turned actor Rick Fox, business leader Sebas Bastian, and Deputy Prime Minister Chester Cooper.
Notably, these disclosures carry an important caveat: Bahamian law does not require candidates’ financial declarations to be audited or certified by an independent accounting professional, so no government body verifies the accuracy of the reported figures before they are published.
Fox, who is running as a Free National Movement (FNM) candidate, tops the overall rankings with a declared net worth of $469 million – a figure that puts him hundreds of millions of dollars ahead of every other candidate in the race.
Trailing Fox is Sebas Bastian, a candidate from the ruling Progressive Liberal Party (PLP), who reported a personal net worth of $28.9 million. Bastian, however, confirmed that an additional $160 million in family and business assets are held in undisclosed trusts that predate his entry into politics. He argued that because he holds only discretionary beneficiary status rather than sole legal ownership of the trust assets, including those assets in his personal declaration would be both improper and inaccurate.
Third place goes to Deputy Prime Minister Chester Cooper, who serves as Minister of Tourism, Investment and Aviation. Cooper declared $28.6 million in total assets, $324,000 in annual income, and $560,000 in outstanding liabilities, bringing his net worth to approximately $28 million. Cooper’s declared wealth has grown steadily during his time in public office: it nearly doubled between the 2017 and 2021 elections, rising from $7.9 million to $14.8 million, and has almost doubled again since 2021.
Former Prime Minister Dr. Hubert Minnis, now running as an independent candidate in the Killarney constituency, comes next with a declared net worth of $19 million. Dr. Minnis reported $20 million in total assets, most held in securities, alongside $1 million in annual income and $1.7 million in liabilities. Like Cooper, his net worth has grown consistently over the past decade of public service, rising from $10.9 million in 2012 to $12.6 million in 2017 and $14 million in 2021.
Incumbent Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis saw little change to his overall asset base, which remains around $4.3 million, primarily invested in real estate and securities. Davis filed a declaration listing $685,162 in savings, $239,665 in a current checking account, and $219,767 in total debt. While he reported a net worth of $4.1 million in the 2021 election cycle, the prime minister did not include a calculated net worth on his 2026 filing submitted to the Parliamentary Registration Department. A spokesperson later clarified that Davis intends to report a net worth of $4.5 million, though the figure did not appear in the official published gazette document.
Among PLP incumbents, multiple candidates saw double or triple-digit growth in their declared net worth since 2021. Sea Breeze MP Leslia Miller-Brice’s net worth jumped from $3.1 million to $8.7 million, with most of her assets held in real estate and securities, and no outstanding liabilities reported. Central and South Eleuthera MP Clay Sweeting’s net worth rose from $1.5 million to $4.5 million, and Carmichael MP Keith Bell’s grew from just over $1 million to $3.9 million. Smaller but consistent growth was recorded for most other PLP incumbents, with only a handful seeing no major change to their overall wealth. A small number of sitting PLP members, including Elizabeth MP JoBeth Coleby-Davis, remain below the $1 million net worth threshold.
On the FNM side of the race, party leader Michael Pintard declared a net worth of $3.97 million, up from $2.9 million in 2021, while senior party figure Dr. Duane Sands reported a net worth of $8.1 million, up from $6.9 million in the last election cycle. Multiple first-time FNM candidates also posted substantial net worths, including Nicholas Fox, who is running in Fox Hill and declared $5.47 million. Like the PLP, not all FNM candidates are millionaires: deputy party leader Shanendon Cartwright, for example, reported a net worth of just under $940,000, while East Grand Bahama incumbent James Kwasi Thompson declared a net worth of $538,500. At the lowest end of the wealth spectrum for FNM contenders, Fort Charlotte candidate Travis Robinson – who reported just $7,300 in net worth when he first ran as a student candidate in 2017, and $147,000 in 2021 – now has a declared net worth of $598,000.
Independent and third-party candidates also span a huge range of wealth. Veronica McIver, the Coalition of Independents candidate challenging Dr. Minnis in Killarney, declared a net worth of $12 million, making her one of the wealthiest candidates in the entire race. At the opposite end of the spectrum, fitness professional Jillian Bartlett, running as an independent in Marco City, reported just $6,600 in total assets and an annual income of $18,000, while missionary Deidre Ann-Taylor, an independent candidate in Exuma and Ragged Island, listed just $4,030 in total assets. A small number of candidates across all parties declined to report a calculated net worth on their filings.