1975 New Hebridean general election

none New Hebrides 1969 1977 10 November 1975 All 29 seats in the Representative Assembly 15 40,174 (88.80%) yes Walter Lini National Party 54.19 17 Remy Delaveuve UCNH #0099FF 30.53 10 Michel Thevenin MANH #CF142B 8.05 2 General elections were held for the first time in the New Hebrides on 10 November 1975.Dieter Nohlen, Florian Grotz & Christof Hartmann (2001) Elections in Asia: A data handbook, Volume II, p834 0-19-924959-8 The result was a victory for the New Hebrides National Party, which won 17 seats in the new Representative Assembly. Background The elections were held following a 1974 agreement between France and the United Kingdom on the territory's future. The agreement provided for the replacement of the Advisory Council with an assembly with increased powers and elected by universal suffrage."Anglo-French agreement on New Hebrides" The Times, 6 November 1974, p5, issue 59237 The election date in November was agreed on 11 July 1975."News in Brief" The Times, 12 July 1975, p6 issue 59446 The 41-member Representative Assembly had 29 directly-elected members, six members representing the Chamber of Commerce (three British and three French), four representatives of customary chiefs and three representing co-operatives.NP leads Pacific Islands Monthly, December 1975, p14 The directly-elected members were elected from 14 constituencies with between one and five seats. In 12 constituencies the members were elected by single non-transferable vote, while in two seats (Port Vila and Santo Town), multiple non-transferable vote was used, with voters allowed to case as many votes as there were seats. Campaign Fearing a victory for the New Hebrides National Party and reluctant to sanction independence due to fears that it may encourage similar sentiments in French Polynesia and New Caledonia, the French element of the joint administration gave support to the European-backed Union of the Communities of the New Hebrides (UCNH). Aircraft hired from New Caledonia were used to campaign around the islands, with the French High Commissioner of New Caledonia involved.Bombs, bribery and ballots in New Hebrides Pacific Islands Monthly, January 1976, p8 Seven planeloads of New Hebrideans were also flown from New Caledonia to vote, with electoral regulations changed on election day to allow the practice. Results Directly-elected seats New Hebrides National Party 27978 17 Union of the Communities of the New Hebrides 15761 10 Movement for the Autonomy of the New Hebrides 4155 2 Nagriamel 650 0 MANH–Tabwemasana–Nagriamel 678 0 Friend Melanesian Party 457 0 Tabwemasana 331 0 Independents 1620 0 0 34911 763 40174 PlantChris Plant (1977) New Hebrides: The road to independence, Institute of Pacific Studies, pp78–80 Chamber of Commerce seats British membersFrench membersCandidateVotesCandidateVotesChung Wai217R. Bacon241René Ah Pow202R. Keller218John Stegler199Philippe Delacroix168J. Seagoe143B. Wong140D. Curtis118J. Russet84J. Miu Mah Kam65R. Coulon74J. Leveredge56C. van Nerum54R. Gallimore49J. Simonsen38D. Joffick27C. Boudier38H. Hamlin19Thevenin17Source: Plant Aftermath Following the victory of the New Hebrides National Party, the authorities sought to try to avoid pro-independence factions holding a majority in the Assembly. No date was set for the opening meeting of the Assembly due to disputes over the election of the chiefs. Following several months of delay, the French High Commissioner proposed increasing the number of chiefs from four to eight.The Ghost Assembly Pacific Islands Monthly, June 1976, p10Splinters flying in N. Hebrides Pacific Islands Monthly, May 1976, p11 The UCNH later called for the number to be increased to ten.Playing to New Hebrideans' gallery Pacific Islands Monthly, July 1976, p11 Protests were held by supporters of the National Party on 27 March 1976. In Pacific Islands Monthly, a member of the National Party claimed that the French authorities had encouraged people to disrupt the demonstrations, with 54 people attached in Espiritu Santo.Nails in the colonial coffin Pacific Islands Monthly, July 1976, pp25–29 In May 1976, six months after voting had taken place, the election of four members in Espiritu Santo – Mary Gilu, Titus Path and Thomas Reuben of the National Party and Michel Thevenin of MANH – was annulled.New Hebrides runaround continues Pacific Islands Monthly, October 1976, p16 An appeal to Joint Court in July was unsuccessful, with the court also annulling the election of Philibert de Montgremier, another National Party candidate. By-elections for the seats were held between 25 and 27 October; Gilu, Path and Reuben were re-elected, while de Montgremier was defeated by George Cronsteadt of MANH–Nagramiel. Thevenin was replaced as the MANH–Nagramiel candidate by Jimmy Stevens, who was also elected.Keith Woodward (2014) A Political Memoir of the Anglo-French Condominium of the New Hebrides p61Santo still 'National' Pacific Islands Monthly, December 1976, p17 An incomplete Assembly finally met on 29 June. At the first meeting it was agreed that the number of chiefs should remain at four. The National Party also attempted to pass a motion of no confidence in the British and French administrators, which was left unresolved.New Hebrides Assembly meets Pacific Islands Monthly, August 1976, p18 The final unfilled seat – the chief representing Northern District, was elected on 26 November following a delay caused by Nagramiel chiefs complaining that others were not wearing traditional dress. National Party supporter Moli Liu Tamata was elected, giving the party 21 of the 42 seats (16 directly elected, three chiefs and two co-operative members); the UCNH had twelve seats, MANH–Nagramiel three and the remaining six were independents. The first official meeting of the complete Assembly took place on 29 November, over a year after the initial elections.New Hebrides Assembly meets – but what's new? Pacific Islands Monthly February 1977, pp17–18 A motion calling for all seats to be elected by universal suffrage at the next election was passed unanimously. However, the Assembly was suspended in March 1977 following a boycott by the National Party.New Hebrides independence in 1980? Pacific Islands Monthly, September 1977, p11 Early elections were held in late 1977. See also List of members of the Representative Assembly of the New Hebrides (1975–1977) References Category:Elections in Vanuatu 1975 election Category:1970s in Vanuatu New Hebrides Category:November 1975 in Oceania