Bermuda is a self-governing British Overseas Territory in the North Atlantic, with the United Kingdom retaining responsibility for defense, foreign affairs, and internal security while a locally elected government handles domestic matters. It operates as a parliamentary democracy under the British monarch, represented by a Governor (John Rankin), with E. David Burt of the Progressive Labour Party serving as Premier. Politics largely revolves around two main parties and recurring debate over the territory's constitutional future, including questions of independence, alongside its close economic and cultural ties to the United Kingdom and the nearby United States.