New Caledonia: Assembly approves postponement of elections, first step towards institutional reform

The National Assembly approved this Tuesday the postponement of provincial elections in New Caledonia, before a final vote in the Senate on Wednesday, a first step towards a possible institutional reform , which divides the archipelago.

The bill was passed by 279 votes to 247, with the support of the government camp and the Socialist Party. The rest of the left and the National Rally voted against. It merely postpones the provincial elections scheduled for November, already postponed twice, to June 28, 2026 "at the latest." But opponents of the bill accuse the government of paving the way for an agreement on a difficult institutional reform in the archipelago, which was ravaged by serious violence in the spring of 2024.

Which electoral body?

The agreement, signed in July in Bougival between the State and the Caledonian pro-independence and non-independence delegations, provides for the creation of a "State of New Caledonia" or the recognition of a Caledonian nationality. Above all, it aims to expand the specific electorate for these elections, a sensitive issue in New Caledonia. Currently, only certain residents can vote, notably those established in the territory before 1998 and their descendants, which angers the loyalist camp. Its implementation would require the adoption of a constitutional bill.

But the Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front (FLNKS), the main pro-independence coalition in New Caledonia, ultimately rejected the Bougival Agreement after its signing and now opposes postponing the elections. Postponing the elections "is neither a constitutional reform nor a thawing of the electoral body," but a means of "giving ourselves time to reach an agreement," Arthur Delaporte (PS) declared in the chamber on Tuesday.

A calendar that is a source of tension

However, the government caused confusion even among its supporters on Tuesday morning by including constitutional reform on the parliamentary agenda as early as January. This came after parliamentarians had removed all reference to Bougival from the text on the postponement of the elections the day before, in an attempt to calm things down. "What are we deciding on?" asked pro-independence MP Emmanuel Tjibaou, asking the government to clarify its intentions. "Trust has been broken," said Mathilde Panot , leader of the LFI group, accusing the government of wanting to "impose" Bougival.

As early as Tuesday afternoon, Laurent Panifous, Minister for Relations with Parliament, acknowledged that the timetable "may have caused concern," and announced the withdrawal of the constitutional text "from the provisional agenda." The Bougival Agreement is "supported by all other non-independence local political parties" and the "National Union for Independence," a movement that withdrew from the FLNKS in November 2024, he added. The minister also considered that the agreement should be "clarified and, if necessary, if all the signatory political forces agree, supplemented."