Editing Patrick Manning (section)

=== Early career ===
After graduating from the University of the West Indies, Manning worked as a geologist with Texaco Trinidad Ltd., until he ran for Parliament in 1971. Between 1971 and 1978 he served as Parliamentary Secretary in various Ministries before being appointed junior Minister in the Ministry of Finance in the government of [[Eric Williams]].<ref>Associated Press, [https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/04/world/americas/patrick-manning-former-prime-minister-of-trinidad-and-tobago-dies-at-69.html "Patrick Manning, Former Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Dies at 69"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', 3 July 2016.</ref> In 1979 he was given the additional position of junior Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister. In 1981 he was given a full Cabinet position of Minister of Information and Minister of Industry and Commerce. Between 1981 and 1986 he served as Minister of Energy and Natural Resources.<ref name="nalis"/>

The 1986 [[Elections in Trinidad and Tobago#1986 general elections|general elections]] saw the ruling PNM suffer an almost total defeat. Only three candidates won their seats; the prime minister, [[George Chambers]], was among the losing candidates. As one of the three successful PNM candidates, Manning was appointed Leader of the Opposition. In 1987, he was elected political leader of the PNM, the youngest the party has seen at only 40 years old. A split in the ruling [[National Alliance for Reconstruction]] in 1988 left the PNM as the minority [[Parliamentary Opposition|Opposition]] party, and, in 1990, [[Basdeo Panday]] requested that he be appointed Leader of the Opposition.<ref name="Meighoo">{{cite book | author=Meighoo, Kirk | author-link=Kirk Meighoo | title=Politics in a Half Made Society: Trinidad and Tobago, 1925–2002 | publisher=Ian Randle Publishers, Kingston, Jamaica | year=2003 |isbn=976-637-079-6}}</ref>