Mereana Reid-Arbelot is the only pro-independence MP to renew her mandate. Tavini Huiraatira loses two deputies: Steve Chailloux, defeated by Nicole Sanquer, and Tematai Legayic, defeated in the first round by Moerani Frebault.
The pro-independence party had triumphed in the 2022 legislative elections, sending three deputies to the French National Assembly. French President Emmanuel Macron used his right to dissolve the Assembly. The new elections were a failure for the independentists. The union of non-independents paid off. In Polynesia, they are referred to as autonomists.
President Brotherson sanctioned?
This election raises a question. Is it a sanction for the policies of Moatai Brotherson, the pro-independence president of the government? Many Polynesians were shocked when elected representatives of the pro-independence party travelled to the dictatorship of Azerbaijan. (As in New Caledonia). Old pro-independence leader Oscar Temaru had also made waves by calling for Polynesian independence without a referendum. We may also wonder whether the chaotic situation in New Caledonia played a role in this pro-independence rout.
