2024 Solomon Islands general election

2021 unrest

In November 2021, protests broke out in Honiara near parliament. Sogavare's government withdrew Solomon Islands' recognition of Taiwan in 2019 and established diplomatic ties with China. The switch faced condemnation by the opposition and the provincial government of Malaita, which maintained de facto relations with Taipei, increasing tensions between Sogavare and Malaita Premier Daniel Suidani. Many protesters were from Malaita province and demanded Sogavare's resignation due to the decision to pursue ties with Beijing, along with other factors, including allegations of the central government ignoring the public on issues including infrastructure. When Sogavare did not address the demonstrators, riots broke out. Police attempted to disperse the crowds by firing tear gas while the government imposed a 36-hour lockdown in the capital.^[20] Demonstrators defied the curfew and took to Honiara's Chinatown.^[21] Numerous businesses and a police station were burnt down,^[20] resulting in three deaths. Once the rioting ceased, military personnel and police from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea were deployed to help restore order.^[21] Opposition Leader Matthew Wale called for Sogavare to do "the honourable thing and resign" and announced he would file a no-confidence motion if the prime minister refused. Sogavare resisted calls to step down and blamed interference from unnamed foreign powers for the riots, stating, "I don't want to name names...we know who they are".^[20] Wale subsequently introduced a no-confidence motion, which Parliament voted on in December 2021. During the debate, Sogavare claimed the "innocent people of Malaita have been lied to by these agents of Taiwan" and described the riots as an "attempted illegal coup". Sogavare survived the no-confidence motion with 32 MPs voting to keep him in office.^[22]

Security pact with China

In March 2022, the DCGA government signed a security pact with China, which permits Solomon Islands to request the deployment of Chinese military personnel to assist the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force in restoring order in the event of a similar incident to the 2021 protests and riots. In such a scenario, Chinese personnel would also protect Chinese-owned businesses, nationals and diplomats.^[23][24] The full details of the pact were not made public.^[25] Reportedly, a part of his "friends to all, enemy to none" foreign policy, Prime Minister Sogavare believed that the pact would benefit Solomon Islands by providing the country with more stability, which would attract more investors and result in further development. The opposition condemned the agreement, claiming it would provide more leverage for Chinese influence that would undermine Solomon Islands' democracy. They pledged to repeal it if they were to oust the DCGA government at the election. Two groups, Transparency Solomon Islands and Solomon Islands Council of Women, claimed the pact would not represent the public's interests, that it would effectively cede the country's sovereignty to China and condemned its alleged lack of holistic consultation with Solomon Islanders. Australia, Fiji, Japan, the Federated States of Micronesia, New Zealand and the United States voiced concerns with the pact. These countries, along with others in the region, also feared how the agreement might allow China to establish a military base in Solomon Islands, which both Honiara and Beijing denied.^[23][24] The pact prompted the United States to re-open an embassy in Honiara in 2023.^[26]

Voters

Voters must be at least 18 years old and hold Solomon Islands citizenship. Individuals disqualified from voting include those that have committed a breach of the electoral law, been declared insane, been imprisoned for more than six months, or were under a death sentence.^[28] The 2018 electoral act introduced pre-polling, open to polling staff and police officers that are to provide security for voting centres on election day.^[29] In early February 2024, the chief electoral officer of the election commission, Jasper Highwood Anisi, announced that citizens abroad on election day, including seasonal workers in Australia and New Zealand, would be unable to vote as absentee voting would not occur. Around the time of the 2024 election, there were no provisions for overseas voting. Anisi said seasonal workers would possibly be able to vote from abroad in future elections.^[30][31] A total of 420,253 citizens were registered to vote in this election.^[32]

Election postponement

In September 2022, the Sogavare government passed a bill in parliament, delaying the dissolution of the 11th Parliament, which was due to occur on 19 May 2023, by several months to 31 December, to enable the postponement of the 2023 general election to 2024.^[33][34] As Solomon Islands were hosting the Pacific Games in 2023, Sogavare said the election delay was necessary, arguing the country could not afford to hold two major events in the same year as it was still recovering from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2021 unrest.^[35] Many citizens were reportedly sceptical about the intentions behind the delay, which also raised fears of unrest.^[36] A survey conducted by Transparency Solomon Islands from 31 March to 1 April 2022 found that 83% of the 2,178 respondents from the public opposed the deferral.^[37] The opposition denounced the postponement as anti-democratic and a "power grab". Opponents also criticised how the government had rushed the bill through parliament, evading the regular procedures that allow for public input. Opposition Leader Wale said the prime minister had "succeeded in making [Solomon Islands] the laughing stock of the region, as a country that is prepared to tamper with its own constitution for a two-week event, against the clear wishes of its people".^[36][3] Sogavare claimed the postponement would not threaten the democratic process and said opponents to the bill lacked evidence that it was undemocratic.^[35] An electoral amendment bill passed by parliament on 14 December 2023 arranged for the national election to occur on the same day as the provincial and Honiara City Council elections,^[38] marking the first joint elections in Solomon Islands since independence. The only two provinces not to schedule provincial elections for 2024 were Choiseul and Western,^[39] which held elections in 2022.^[40] On 26 January 2024, the electoral commission scheduled the election for 17 April.^[1]

OUR Party

On 8 February, the OUR Party launched a manifesto.^[64] Party leader and Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare announced the OUR Party's five most prioritised policies going into the election. The first was preserving social cohesion and national unity to prevent ethnic tensions from rising, as in 2000. Enhancing the nation's legal and governing systems to guarantee public safety was another key priority, as was socio-economic growth; the party pledged to utilise the Australian Infrastructure Financing Facility for the Pacific, the Solomon Islands Infrastructure Program and China's Belt and Road Initiative. The OUR Party's fourth priority was national defence, security and trade; the party sought to preserve relations with Australia and other traditional allies while expanding ties with China as part of a "look north" policy. The fifth key priority was development and land and resources empowerment.^[59] During a campaign rally in the Malaitan provincial capital of Auki, Sogavare delivered a speech where he praised the Chinese political system and declared his government's decision to switch diplomatic ties from Taiwan to China to have "put Solomon Islands on the map". Sogavare also claimed that democracy leads to moral decline and same-sex marriage.^[65]

CARE

On 7 February, the Democratic Alliance Party (DAP), led by former Prime Minister Rick Houenipwela and the Solomon Islands Democratic Party (SIDP), led by Opposition Leader Matthew Wale, established the Coalition for Accountability, Reform and Empowerment (CARE) to contest the election.^[66] Along with the DAP and SIDP, Umi for Change was also a member party of CARE.^[67] The CARE coalition released a manifesto on 14 February; issues it highlighted include job creation, infrastructure investment, implementing free education, decreasing the cost of living and creating 25,000 jobs over a four-year period.^[68][69] CARE pledged to implement a 15% pay rise for public servants and enhance the nation's health services. The coalition also promised to address medicine shortages in health establishments nationwide and to ease the overburdened National Referral Hospital in Honiara by funnelling more resources into provincial hospitals.^[70] The coalition's leader, Matthew Wale, criticised the Parliamentary Entitlement Commission (PEC), which oversees the entitlements of parliamentarians, for its plans to implement a pay increase for members of parliament. Pointing to issues such as the struggling economy, the healthcare crisis and the poor quality of roads nationwide, Wale described PEC's decision as a "slap in the face" to Solomon Islanders and announced CARE's intention to replace the PEC with a High Salaries Commission; intending to monitor the salaries of public servants and provide more accountability and transparency.^[71] Regarding foreign policy, Wale announced that CARE would maintain a balanced engagement with foreign countries, including China and the United States. Wale stressed the coalition would ultimately prioritise the national interests of Solomon Islands and ensure that consultation with the public would occur before making foreign policy decisions.^[69]

Kadere Party

The Kadere Party focused on governance and economic transformation. General Secretary Martin Housanau announced the party would focus on shifting Solomon Islands' economy away from raw material production and into a value-adding economy as part of an industrialisation redirection. The Party also advocated for land law reform; Housanau claimed land issues were the most prominent obstacles to economic development and argued: "There are three factors of production in the economy, these are, capital, labour and land if any of these three factors is absent, the economy will become stagnant and decline".^[55]

SIPRA

The Solomon Islands Party for Rural Advancement (SIPRA), led by former Prime Minister Gordon Darcy Lilo,^[25] pledged to provide additional resources to assist the anti-corruption commission. Lilo claimed that despite the passage of an anti-corruption act, the government had taken little action in combatting corruption and suggested the anti-corruption commission was under-resourced.^[57] The party also promised to assist small and medium-sized businesses nationwide and invest in the agricultural, tourism and fisheries sectors. Viewing small and medium businesses as key to economic recovery and growth, Lilo cited the roles these businesses have played in numerous Asian countries.^[77] Like the UP and CARE, SIPRA called for a review of the security pact with China.^[25]

United Party

The Solomon Islands United Party (UP) launched its campaign on 7 March. A core aspect of the UP's manifesto was unity in diversity; the party advocated for developing a "real national identity" whilst preserving the ethnically diverse nation's numerous cultural identities.^[78] Party leader Peter Kenilorea Jr., son of the nation's first prime minister, Peter Kenilorea,^[79] announced the UP would re-establish ties with Taiwan while maintaining relations with China and reviewing China's security deal.^[54] The party also sought to preserve relations with traditional development partners, although Kenilorea warned that Solomon Islands should not hold them as the country's sole saviours.^[80] The UP called for a diversification of the economy and warned that the country's reliance on limited income streams, especially logging exports, left Solomon Islands vulnerable to external economic crises. Addressing issues regarding critical infrastructure was another priority for the party, particularly the poor state of the roads and bridges.^[81]

By constituency

Local results

In Malaita Province, former Premier Daniel Suidani, who was removed from his position following a no-confidence vote in the Provincial Assembly in 2023, was re-elected, while his successor, Martin Fini, lost his seat.^[108] A few disturbances were recorded in the province and were blamed on supporters of losing candidates.^[109] Three women were elected to the provincial assemblies in Temotu, Malaita, and Isabel, while two women were also elected to the Honiara City Council.^[103]

Government formation

Negotiations to form a government reportedly began the day before the election.^[110][111] Following the election, the OUR Party and the opposition began efforts to win over the ten kingmaker independents. Sogavare claimed the opposition parties faced divisions in who to field for prime minister.^[101] CARE coalition Leader Matthew Wale, UP Leader Peter Kenilorea Jr., and former Prime Minister Gordon Darcy Lilo emerged as potential candidates to take on Sogavare for prime minister.^[111] On 26 April, Sogavare announced that the OUR Party had renewed an alliance with the People First Party, giving the bloc 18 seats, claiming it had enough support to form a government. However, he did not name other coalition partners.^[99] On 27 April, CARE signed a coalition agreement with the UP, increasing the alliance's seat count to 20.^[112]

Governor-General David Vunagi announced on 29 April that a parliamentary vote to elect the prime minister would take place on 2 May.^[90] The OUR Party and People First Party were later joined by the Kadere Party, forming the Coalition of National Unity and Transformation^[113] (later the Government of National Unity and Transformation, GNUT).^[114] Shortly before nominations for the prime ministerial election opened, Sogavare announced on 29 April that he would not stand for another term as prime minister and resign as the OUR Party leader, which he said was a "collective decision". The bloc instead nominated Foreign Minister Jeremiah Manele, who also succeeded Sogavare as leader of the OUR Party.^[115][113] The CARE coalition, along with the UP and SIPRA, nominated Matthew Wale for prime minister.^[116] Before the prime ministerial election, Manele's coalition claimed to have secured the support of the independents, providing the bloc with 28 seats.^[117] Prime ministerial elections in Solomon Islands are often unpredictable, as MPs are not legally barred from switching parties. Another factor is the vast difference in income and benefits between government MPs and the opposition.^[115] Ruth Liloqula, the chief executive of Transparency Solomon Islands, claimed many MPs were changing affiliation, motivated by personal and political gain rather than by policies and principles. She highlighted how many of the newly elected independent MPs had campaigned for a change in government, with some unseating OUR Party members, only to join the party's coalition after the election.^[118] The elections for prime minister are conducted through a secret ballot. Although it is held in the National Parliament, it is not a parliamentary meeting and is presided over by the governor-general rather than the speaker.^[119] Manele won with 31 votes, defeating Wale, who earned 18. There was one abstention.^[120] Two members of Wale's bloc, Francis Sade of the UP and Cathy Nori, defected to the GNUT and voted for Manele.^[121] During the first session of the 12th Parliament, on 16 May, Patteson Oti was re-elected as speaker, while Sade was elected deputy speaker.^[122] Wale assumed another term as opposition leader.^[123]