New Caledonia holds first provincial vote since 2019 amid status talks with France

Polls have opened in New Caledonia for the territory's first provincial elections since 2019, in a vote that will help determine the balance of power before fresh negotiations with France over its political future. The ballot was originally due in 2024 but was delayed after talks stalled. Independence remains the central issue in the French overseas territory, where the result is expected to shape the next phase of discussions.

Sponsored

About 192,000 voters are choosing 76 councillors across three provincial assemblies. Those seats are split between 40 in the South Province, 22 in the North Province and 14 in the Loyalty Islands. Fifty-four of the elected councillors will also sit in the congress, the territory's main governing institution and the only body authorised to pass local laws.

Members of congress will then choose up to 11 members of the collegial government. The vote comes after the main pro-independence group rejected a deal with France intended to stabilise the territory. The Bougival Accord would have created a Caledonian state and established a Caledonian nationality written into the French constitution, but it would also have ended any future referendums on independence.

Three referendums in 2018, 2020 and 2021 produced majorities for remaining part of France, although pro-independence groups boycotted the third vote during the Covid pandemic. The election is being watched closely because of the territory's recent unrest and the continuing dispute over who should shape its future. A law approved in May added about 10,575 previously excluded native-born residents to the electoral roll, including more than 4,000 people with customary civil status, a category that denotes Kanaks.

Sponsored

That change increased the number of eligible voters after the roll had been frozen under a landmark 1998 agreement. A previous plan to extend voting rights to thousands of non-Indigenous long-term residents helped trigger deadly riots in 2024. The political stakes are high because the congress and provincial assemblies will influence how New Caledonia approaches renewed talks with France.

The independence movement still has strong support, particularly among the indigenous Melanesian Kanak population, and the outcome may affect the balance between pro-independence and pro-France forces. France has also deployed about 2,400 law enforcement officers to the territory, underlining the sensitivity of the vote. What remains unclear is how the new assemblies will be divided and whether the result will make negotiations easier or more difficult.

The scale of support for the main blocs will also show whether the rejection of the Bougival Accord has shifted the political landscape. The next key moment will be the formation of the congress and collegial government, followed by the renewed talks with France on the territory's status.

#NewCaledonia #provincialelections #France #independence #Kanak

Sponsored