by Richard Sanders, Staff Writer
The people of Kiribati have participated in the initial phase of voting today. The Kiribati Electoral Commission, in collaboration with the Ministry for Culture and Internal Affairs, is overseeing the election process.
There is limited information available online regarding the elections, with the primary official updates being posted on the Ministry of Culture’s Facebook page in late July, specifically regarding the list of candidates.
A total of 114 candidates will be competing in the first round of voting, one fewer than the previous election. The second round of voting is scheduled for the following Monday.
Subsequently, political parties will nominate their candidates for the presidency, with Taneti Maamau, the incumbent Beretitenti (President) for the past eight years, likely to be a contender.
After the initial round of voting, provisional results will be broadcast on local radio in taetae ni Kiribati on Wednesday evening. The final counts for larger constituencies like South Tarawa may not be completed until Thursday morning.
The second round of voting is set for Monday, August 19, with results announced on local radio overnight. The final election results are expected to be disclosed on Tuesday, August 20.
The general election for the Beretitenti is projected to take place in September or October.
In this election, there are 18 female candidates, a notable increase from the seven in 2020. Among them, ten women are running in the competitive South Tarawa district, including three who are lawyers.
Kiribati, a low-lying Micronesian nation with a population of around 120,000, is highly susceptible to the impacts of climate change, such as sea-level rise.
This election will be the second since Kiribati shifted its diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China in September 2019.
