Vanuatu - January 2025

Vanuatu held snap general elections on 16 January in which no political party won a majority in the 52-seat parliament. While the election was called as a result of persistent political instability in the country, the question of how to rebuild from a major earthquake on 17 December dominated the campaign. The Leaders Party secured the most seats (nine) and announced it had secured a ruling coalition with the Vanua'aku Party, Graon Mo Jastis Party, Reunification Movement for Change, and the Iauko Group on 28 January. Voter turnout was 69.1 per cent, up from 44.2 per cent in the 2022 general election. Contrary to post-election worries that the failure of Gloria Julia King to win re-election would mean that the incoming parliament would be entirely men, Marie Louis Paulette Milne of the Green Confederation Party secured a seat and will replace King as the chamber’s sole woman member.

The Vanuatu Electoral Commission reported that turnout in the 2025 snap election was 69 per cent, up from 44 per cent in the previous election in 2022 and the highest since 2008. Pre-election concerns that persistent political instability and the ongoing efforts to recover from the 17 December earthquake would contribute to low voter turnout proved to be unfounded.

Sources: Radio New Zealand, The Daily Post, International IDEA