New Caledonia votes in first provincial election since 2019
Voters are choosing provincial assemblies in a delayed election expected to shape talks with France over the territory’s future.
By Sofia Marchetti · World Affairs Correspondent
2 min read
Voting began Sunday in New Caledonia’s first provincial elections since 2019, a contest expected to influence the French-ruled Pacific territory’s next talks with Paris over its political status. RNZ reported that about 2,500 police officers were deployed to secure and monitor polling sites after unrest delayed the vote from its original 2024 timetable.
Polling opened at 8 a.m. local time Sunday, or 21:00 GMT Saturday, according to RNZ. The New Zealand public broadcaster reported that voters had already formed a long line outside a polling station at the Hotel de Ville in Noumea, the capital, before voting began.
AFP images showed people casting ballots at the Veyret-Kafoa polling station in the Riviere Salee neighbourhood of Noumea. Another AFP image showed a ballot box at the Salle Omnisports in Noumea during the election.
What voters are choosing
About 192,000 voters are eligible to elect 76 councillors across New Caledonia’s three provincial assemblies, according to AFP and Reuters. The south province will choose 40 councillors, the north province 22 and the Loyalty Islands 14.
Of those elected, 54 will take seats in New Caledonia’s congress, the territory’s main governing institution. AFP and Reuters reported that the congress has authority to pass local laws.
The election was initially scheduled for 2024, but was postponed while the archipelago dealt with violent unrest between Indigenous Kanaks and French loyalists, according to AFP and Reuters. The result is expected to be a key factor in future discussions with France about the territory’s status.
A long-running dispute with France
New Caledonia lies in the southwest Pacific, about 1,500 kilometres, or 930 miles, east of Australia. AFP and Reuters reported that it has about 270,000 residents, including 41 percent Melanesian Kanak people and 24 percent people of European origin, mostly French.
France colonised New Caledonia in 1863, and the territory became a French overseas territory in 1946, according to AFP and Reuters. Its relationship with France has been contested for decades, with independence supporters and loyalists divided over the territory’s future.
Sunday’s vote follows the main pro-independence group’s rejection of an agreement with France that was designed to bring stability to the territory, AFP and Reuters reported. The proposed accord would have created a Caledonian state and a Caledonian nationality protected in the French constitution.
AFP and Reuters reported that the same agreement would also have ended any future referendums on independence. Three such votes have been held, in 2018, 2020 and 2021, and each produced a majority in favour of remaining part of France.
Pro-independence groups boycotted the third referendum, which took place during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to AFP and Reuters.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.