Cook Islands general election, 2010

General elections were held in the Cook Islands on 17 November 2010 in order to elect 24 MPs to the Cook Islands Parliament. The elections were won by the Cook Islands Party, which won 16 of the 24 seats. Voter turnout was 78%.

A binding referendum on whether the number of MPs should be reduced from 24 was held at the same time as the election.

Parliament will sit for the first time following the election in February 2011.

The Democratic Party government of Prime Minister Jim Marurai, which had governed since 2004, effectively collapsed in December 2009 after Finance Minister Terepai Maoate was sacked for his mishandling of a bid to buy the Toa fuel tank farm. This resulted in a mass-resignation of Democratic Party cabinet members, the expulsion of Marurai and his supporters, and the withdrawal of support for the government. Marurai then refused to reconvene Parliament in order to forestall a confidence vote. A formal split in the Democratic Party was averted in June 2010 when a party conference readmitted Marurai and the other Cabinet members, and appointed Deputy Prime Minister Robert Wigmore as party leader, with Wilkie Rasmussen as his deputy. However, several senior MPs, including former leader Terepai Maoate and former President John Tangi subsequently failed to win reselection and ran as independents.

In the leadup to the election two sitting MPs announced their retirement: Piho Rua and Speaker of the House Mapu Taia. Both were members of the Democratic Party.

Parliament was dissolved on 24 September. Candidate registration closed on 15 October. 70 candidates registered, including 24 from the Cook Islands Party, 23 from the Democrats, 6 from the Te Kura O Te ‘Au People's Movement and 16 independents. Of the 70 candidates, eight were women.

...
Wikipedia