*Note: This election comes after a dissolution of the government by President Nikenike Vurobaravu on August 19th, 2022. There was a vote of no-confidence against current Prime Minister Bob Loughman scheduled the day after. On September 9th, 2022, the Supreme Court confirmed the constitutionality of this decision to dissolve the government while knowing that a no-confidence vote was on the way.¹ 

At Stake in this Election:        

• 52 seats in the Parliament of the Republic of Vanuatu 

Government Structure: 

• Chief of State: President Nikenike VUROBARAVU 

• Head of Government: Prime Minister Bob LOUGHMAN 

• Assembly: Unicameral Parliament with 52 seats 

Electoral System: 

• The President is elected by an electoral college consisting of Parliament and the presidents of the regional councils. They are elected to a five-year term.  

• The Prime Minister is elected internally by the members of Parliament and must be a current member of Parliament. They are in power until a vote of no confidence by the Parliament.  

• The 52 members of Parliament are elected in eighteen constituencies, ten of which are multi-member constituencies of between two and seven seats, while the remaining eight are single-member constituencies. They are elected to four-year terms. 

Main Parties in this Election:  

• Land and Justice Party 

• Leader: Ralph REGENVANU 

• Seats won in last election: 9 

• Vanua’aki Pati 

• Leader: Bob LOUGHMAN 

• Seats won in last election: 7 

• Reunification Movement for Change 

• Leader: Charlot SALWAI 

• Seats won in last election: 7 

• Leaders Party of Vanuatu 

• Leader: Jotham NAPAT 

• Seats won in last election: 5 

• Union of Moderate Parties 

• Leader: Ishmael KALSAKAU 

• Seats won in last election: 5 

Population and Registered Voters: 

• Population: 308,043 (2022 est.)² 

• Registered Voters: 278,954 (2020)³ 

Gender Data: 

• Female Population: 149,759 (2020 est.)⁴ 

• Is Vanuatu a signatory to CEDAW: No 

• Has Vanuatu ratified CEDAW: Yes (Accession) (08 Sep 1995)⁵ 

• Gender Quota: None 

• Female Candidates in this election: Yes - 8⁶

• Number of Female Legislators (pre-election): 0 out of 52 (0%)⁷ 

• Human Development Index (HDI) Position: Rank 140 at 0.607 (2022)⁸ 

• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: N/A 

Disability Data: 

• Is Vanuatu a signatory to CRPD: Yes (17 May 2007)⁹ 

• Has Vanuatu ratified CRPD: Yes (23 Oct 2008)¹⁰ 

• Population with a disability: 40,840 (2022 est.)¹¹ 

IFES Resources: 

• Does IFES have a presence in Vanuatu: No 

 

1. https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/474344/vanuatu-snap-election-timeline-announced 

2. https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/vanuatu/ 

3. https://www.idea.int/data-tools/country-view/304/40

4. https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/vanuatu/

5. https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/TreatyBodyExternal/Treaty.aspx?Treaty=CEDAW&Lang=en

6.  https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/oct/13/vanuatu-goes-to-polls-by-air-sea-and-road-in-snap-election-after-lightning-campaign?CMP=share_btn_link 

7. https://data.ipu.org/women-ranking?month=8&year=2022 

8. https://hdr.undp.org/data-center/specific-country-data#/countries/VUT 

9. https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/TreatyBodyExternal/Treaty.aspx?Treaty=CEDAW&Lang=en

10. https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/TreatyBodyExternal/Treaty.aspx?Treaty=CEDAW&Lang=en

11. http://electionaccess.org/en/resources/countries/?q=van#tab