2018 Fijian general election

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2018 Fijian general election
File:Flag of Fiji.svg
← 2014
14 November 2018
2022 →
All 51 seats in the Parliament of Fiji
26 seats needed for a majority
Opinion polls
Registered637,527
Turnout71.92% (Decrease12.68pp)
  First party Second party Third party
  File:Frank Bainimarama November 2014.jpg File:Sitiveni Rabuka July 2016.jpg File:Biman Prasad January 2015.jpg
Leader Frank Bainimarama Sitiveni Rabuka Biman Prasad
Party FijiFirst SODELPA NFP
Last election 59.17%, 32 seats 28.18%, 15 seats 5.46%, 3 seats
Seats won 27 21 3
Seat change Decrease 5 Increase 6 Steady
Popular vote 227,241 181,072 33,515
Percentage 50.02% 39.85% 7.38%
Swing Decrease 9.15pp Increase 11.67pp Increase 1.92pp
Prime Minister before election

Frank Bainimarama
FijiFirst

Subsequent Prime Minister

Frank Bainimarama
FijiFirst

Politics of Fiji
File:Coat of arms of Fiji.svg
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Executive
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Former and informal
File:Frank Bainimarama November 2014.jpg
This article is part of
a series about
Frank Bainimarama
2006–2022 2022–2023
Timeline
General elections

General elections were held in Fiji on 14 November 2018.[1] The result was a victory for the ruling FijiFirst party of Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama, which received just over 50% of the vote and 27 of the 51 seats in Parliament, a loss of five seats.[2] The main opposition party, Social Democratic Liberal Party, gained six seats, whilst the National Federation Party retained its three seats.

The elections also saw female representation in Parliament rise to nearly 20 percent, with 10 of the 51 members being women.[3]

Background and campaign

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On 10 March, SODELPA launched their party manifesto for the election in Sydney, making it the first time a Fijian political party has launched their party manifesto overseas. The event attracted many supporters among the Fijian diaspora, especially Fijian Australians.[4]

On 30 September, Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama announced that the elections would be held on 14 November 2018. President Jioji Konrote subsequently dissolved parliament in accordance with section 58(3) of the constitution, on the advice of the Prime Minister.

234 candidates representing six political parties contested in the elections. 56 of the candidates were women.[5] Candidate numbers for the ballot paper were drawn on 18 October.[6] The Labour Party and Freedom Alliance Party presented a combined party list under the Labour Party banner.

During a campaign rally, FijiFirst leader Frank Bainimarama stated that he wanted to win all 51 parliamentary seats and govern without an opposition, arguing that the two main opposition parties represented i-Taukei and Indo-Fijian interests rather than all Fijians.[7] The SODELPA party promised to restore the Great Council of Chiefs within a hundred days if elected, and to consider changing the electoral system to restore communal constituencies.[8] They later explicitly promised to restore the 1997 constitution.[9]

During the election campaign SODELPA leader Sitiveni Rabuka was tried and acquitted on charges of falsely declaring his assets and liabilities to the Supervisor of Elections.[10] An appeal by the Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption,[11] which could have resulted in Rabuka's disqualification two days from the poll, was dismissed, with FICAC ordered to pay costs.[12] Shortly before the appeal was decided Rabuka was again called in by police on unspecified charges.[13]

On election day, voting was suspended at 26 polling stations due to torrential rain and flooding.[14] Ballots cast at those stations were shredded. Polling recommenced with fresh ballot papers on Saturday 17 November.

Electoral system

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Main article: Electoral system of Fiji

The 51 members of Parliament were elected from a single nationwide constituency by open list proportional representation with an electoral threshold of 5%. Seats are allocated using the d'Hondt method.[15][16]

Prior to the election the Electoral Commission increased the number of seats from 50 to 51 in accordance with section 54 of the Fiji constitution to maintain the ratio of population to seats. The commission determined the ratio in 2014 was one seat for every 17,472 citizens. With the Fiji Bureau of Statistics projecting a population of 886,416 as of 1 March 2017 achieving the same ratio would require 50.73 seats which the commission rounded up to 51 for the 2018 election.[17]

Schedule

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Key dates relating to the general election were as follows:

30 September (Sunday) Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama announces elections to be held on 14 November 2018.
30 September (Sunday) President Jioji Konrote dissolves parliament in accordance with section 58(3) of the constitution, on the advice of the Prime Minister.
1 October (Monday) President Jioji Konrote issues the writ of election
1 October (Monday) Registration of voters ends at 6 p.m.
2 October (Tuesday) Candidate nominations open at 8 a.m.
15 October (Monday) Candidate nominations close at 12 p.m.
24 October (Wednesday) Postal voting applications close at 5 p.m.
5 November (Monday) Pre-poll voting begins
10 November (Saturday) Pre-poll voting ends
12 November (Monday) Media blackout on campaigning commences at 12.00 a.m. for 48 hours
14 November (Wednesday) Election Day – polling places open from 7.30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
14 November (Wednesday) Election Night – provisional results will be progressively released from 6 p.m.
18 November (Sunday) Official results declared
18 November (Sunday) President Jioji Konrote receives the Writ of Election from the Electoral Commission.

Opinion polls

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Main article: Opinion polling for the 2018 Fijian general election

Approval ratings

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Pollster(s) Date Sample size Bainimarama Rabuka Kepa Prasad
Satisfied Dissatisfied Lead Satisfied Dissatisfied Lead Satisfied Dissatisfied Lead Satisfied Dissatisfied Lead
The Fiji Times[18] 11 Feb 2017 1,001 78% 4% +74% 34% 12% +22% 44% 10% +34% 36% 9% +27%

Satisfaction with the government

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Question: Has this FijiFirst government done a good job in the last four years?
Pollster(s) Date Sample size Yes (%) No (%) Unsure (%) Lead
Fiji Sun[19] 22 Sep 2018 1,000 60% 21% 19% +39%

Preferred Deputy Prime Minister

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National

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{{#chart:Graphical summary of opinion polls for preferred Deputy Prime Minister in the 2018 Fijian general election.chart|data=Graphical summary of opinion polls for preferred Deputy Prime Minister in the 2018 Fijian general election.tab}}
View source data.
Graphical summary of opinion polls for preferred Deputy Prime Minister
Pollster(s) Date Sample size Sayed-Khaiyum Radrodro Nawaikula Tikoduadua Lead
Fiji Sun[20] 9 Sep 2017 57% 3% 2% 5% +52%
Fiji Sun[21] 11 Nov 2017 600 51% 3% 7% 7% +44%
Fiji Sun[22] 20 Jan 2018 600 48% 7% 4% 5% +41%
Fiji Sun[23] 12 May 2018 1,000 60% — 21% 19% +39%

Northern Division

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Pollster(s) Date Sample size Sayed-Khaiyum Radrodro Nawaikula Tikoduadua Lead
Fiji Sun[24] 9 Sep 2017 38% 19% 17% 7% +19%

Preferred Prime Minister

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{{#chart:Graphical summary of opinion polls for preferred Prime Minister in the 2018 Fijian general election.chart|data=Graphical summary of opinion polls for preferred Prime Minister in the 2018 Fijian general election.tab}}
View source data.
Graphical summary of opinion polls for preferred Prime Minister
Pollster(s) Date Sample size Bainimarama Rabuka Kepa Prasad Chaudhry Lead
Fiji Sun[25] 29 Jul 2017 59% 13% 14% — — +45%
Fiji Sun[26] 9 Sep 2017 71% 7% 13% 4% — +58%
Fiji Sun[27] 11 Nov 2017 600 66% 10% 14% 3% 2% +52%
Fiji Sun[28] 20 Jan 2018 600 66% 11% 18% 2% 2% +48%
Fiji Sun[29] 3 Mar 2018 600 68% 11% 11% 5% 0% +57%
Fiji Sun[30] 24 Mar 2018 600 62% 5% 20% 9% 1% +42%
Fiji Sun[31] 31 Mar 2018 600 63% 11% 11% 8% — +52%
Fiji Sun[32] 13 Oct 2018 100 64% 14% 4% 8% – +50%
The Fiji Times[33] 22-24 Oct 2014 68% 24% — 5% — +44%
Fiji Sun[34] 3 Nov 2018 1,000 60% 4% 20% 10% — +40%

Voting intention

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{{#chart:Graphical summary of opinion polls for voting intention in the 2018 Fijian general election.chart|data=Graphical summary of opinion polls for voting intention in the 2018 Fijian general election.tab}}
View source data.
Graphical summary of opinion polls for voting intention
Pollster(s) Date Sample size FijiFirst SODELPA NFP Unity HOPE Labour Lead
Fiji Sun[35] 11 Nov 2017 600 63% 21% 3% 0% — 3% +42%
Fiji Sun[36] 20 Jan 2018 600 61% 26% 2% 1% — 0% +35%
Fiji Sun[37] 24 Mar 2018 600 62% 24% 5% — — 4% +38%
Fiji Sun[38] 12 May 2018 1,000 62% 16% 5% — — 7% +46%
Fiji Sun[39] 22 Sep 2018 1,000 66% 13% 2% 9% 5% 5% +53%
Fiji Sun[40] 13 Oct 2018 100 63% 15% 10% 2% 5% 2% +48%
Western Force Research[41] 3 Nov 2018 1,118 60% 24% 9% 0% 0% 0% +36%

Results

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Main article: Results of the 2018 Fijian general election
File:Fijian Parliament 2018.svg
PartyVotes%+/–Seats+/–
FijiFirst227,24150.02–9.1527–5
Social Democratic Liberal Party181,07239.85+11.6721+6
National Federation Party33,5157.38+1.9330
Unity Fiji Party6,8961.52+1.520New
HOPE2,8110.62+0.620New
Fiji Labour Party2,8000.62–1.7300
Total454,335100.00–51+1
Valid votes454,33599.08
Invalid/blank votes4,1970.92
Total votes458,532100.00
Registered voters/turnout637,52771.92
Source: FEO

By division

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Division FijiFirst SODELPA NFP UFP HOPE FLP Total votes
Central 44.5% 45.4% 7.4% 1.7% 0.5% 0.5% 148,131
Eastern 44.7% 45.6% 7.1% 1.5% 0.6% 0.5% 76,750
Northern 46.0% 45.8% 6.4% 0.7% 0.6% 0.6% 67,560
Western 60.2% 28.7% 7.9% 1.8% 0.7% 0.8% 152,766
Postal votes 44.6% 44.6% 8.3% 1.5% 0.6% 0.4% 9,128
File:Flag of Fiji.svg Fiji 50.0% 39.9% 7.4% 1.5% 0.6% 0.6% 454,335
Source: 2018 Election Results

Aftermath

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The ruling FijiFirst Party lost five seats, but retained a majority in Parliament. FijiFirst leader Frank Bainimarama blamed poor weather for the loss of votes.[42] Bainimarama was sworn in as Prime Minister on 20 November 2018.[43]

Reactions

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Australian foreign minister Marise Payne congratulated Bainimarama's re-election in an official statement.[44]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ FEO Launches 2018 General Elections Publication Handbook Fiji Sun, 19 January 2018
  2. ^ Fiji election: Bainimarama returned as PM in slim victory The Guardian, 18 November 2018
  3. ^ More women, bigger opposition in Fiji parliament Radio New Zealand, 19 November 2018
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  15. ^ Electoral system IPU
  16. ^ Electoral system for national legislature – Fiji Archived 4 September 2018 at the Wayback Machine IDEA
  17. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  18. ^ https://www.fijitimes.com/pm-rates-top/
  19. ^ https://fijisun.com.fj/2018/09/22/vote2018-pm-at-74-in-latest-fiji-sun-razor-opinion-poll/
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  29. ^ https://fijisun.com.fj/2018/03/03/pm-increases-lead-poll/
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  34. ^ https://fijisun.com.fj/2018/11/03/fijifirst-leads-in-2-polls/
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  41. ^ https://fijisun.com.fj/2018/11/03/fijifirst-leads-in-2-polls/
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