Anti-Independence Parties Lead in Preliminary Results in New Caledonia
Final results gave loyalists 24 seats and pro-independence parties 26, leaving a four-seat centrist bloc to decide the next government.
- New Caledonia's provincial elections on June 28 resulted in a hung Congress, with the pro-independence bloc winning 26 of 54 seats and Sonia Backes' loyalist alliance, Les Loyalistes-Le Rassemblement, securing 24 seats.
- The June 28 vote marked the territory's first provincial election since 2019, following deadly 2024 riots that left 14 dead and caused about €2.2 billion in economic damage, exposing strains in France's relationship with the Indigenous Kanak population.
- Authorities deployed 2,500 law enforcement officers, including police and gendarmes, to maintain a "visible" presence during voting, while many citizens in regions like Lifou timed their arrival around Sunday mass to observe the counting process.
- Under New Caledonia's rules, the newly elected Congress must now form a government via proportional representation, with the centrist party Eveil holding four seats positioned to act as kingmaker in selecting the president and vice president.
- Deep political divisions persist in the French Pacific territory, home to 270,000 inhabitants split between pro-independence and pro-France camps, a divide evidenced by three referendums that returned majorities for France, though the 2021 vote faced boycotts during the COVID pandemic.
23 Articles
23 Articles
At the end of the provincial elections, on Sunday 28 June, the leader of the non-independenceists, Sonia Backès, offered the absolute majority in the South Province, against a swept centre, but she did not take the congress away. The oceanic Eve, a moderate party, was called to play kings again. The negotiations opened on Monday.
charentelibre.fr
NotreTemps.comOn Sunday, the approximately 192,500 voters were to renew the 76 councillors of the three southern - provinces, northern and caledonian islands, 54 of whom were later elected to Congress.
Liberation
INTELLINEWSA small, moderate party, the Oceanian Awakening, is in an arbitrating position between the independentist and non-independenceist blocs. It is now time to negotiate to form a coalition.
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 44% of the sources are Center
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
