Electoral system for national legislature

Constitution 1990

(Articles 41 and 48)

Number and method of election of members

41.-(1) There shall be seventy members of the House of Representatives, and they shall be elected to represent constituencies.

(2) For the purpose of electing the members of the House, voters shall be registered on one of four separate rolls, that is to say -

(a) a roll of voters who are Fijians;
(b) a roll of voters who are Indians;
(c) a roll of voters who are Rotumans; and

(d) a roll of voters who are neither Fijians, Indians nor Rotumans.

(3) Thirty-seven members of the House shall be elected from among persons who are registered on the roll of voters who are Fijians.

(4) Twenty-seven members of the House shall be elected from among persons who are registered on the roll of voters who are Indians.

(5) One member of the House shall be elected from amongst persons who are registered on the roll of voters who are Rotumans.

(6) Five members of the House shall be elected from among persons who are registered on the roll of voters who are neither Fijians, Indians nor Rotumans.

Constituencies

48.-(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, the boundaries of constituencies for the purpose of the election of members of the House of Representatives shall be such as may be prescribed by order made by the Constituency Boundaries Commission.

(2) Fiji shall -

(a) for the purpose of electing thirty-two of the members of the House of Representatives referred to in section 41(3) of this Constitution, comprise the following fourteen constituencies, the boundaries of which shall, subject to the prescription of boundaries of the constituencies referred to in the next following paragraph, be in accordance with the provincial boundaries constituted and prescribed under the Fijian Affairs Act, and each constituency shall return the following number of members:

Province

Ba   
Bua
Cakadrove Kadavu
Lau
Lomaviti Macuata Nadroga/Navosa Naitasiri Namosi
Ra
Rewa
Serua
Tailevu

Number of Constituencies

3 2 3 2 3 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3

(b) for the purpose of the election of the other five members of the House of Representatives referred to in section 41(3) of this Constitution, there shall be five urban constituencies each returning one member.

(c) for the purpose of electing the members of the House of Representatives referred to in section 41(1), be divided into twenty-seven constituencies each returning one member.

(d) for the purpose of electing the member of the House of Representatives referred to in section 41(5), comprise one constituency returning one member.

(e) for the purpose of electing the member of the House of Representatives referred to in section 41(6), be divided into five constituencies each returning one member.

(3) When the Constituency Boundaries Commission prescribes the boundaries of the constituencies or, following a review of those boundaries, prescribes new boundaries for any constituencies , it shall do so in such a manner that -

(a) the constituencies referred to in paragraph (b) of the preceding subsection contain as nearly equal numbers of adult inhabitants who are Fijians;

(b) the constituencies referred to in paragraph (c) of the preceding subsection contain as nearly equal numbers of adult inhabitants who are Indians and;

(c) the constituencies referred to in paragraph (e) of the preceding subsection contain as nearly equal numbers of adult inhabitants who are neither Fijians, Indians or Rotumans, as appear to the Commission to be reasonably practicable:

Provided that the Commission may depart from the foregoing principles to such extent as it considers expedient in order to take account of geographical features, the boundaries of existing administrative and recognised traditional areas, means of communication and density and mobility of populations:

And provided further that in exercising its functions in relation to the constituencies referred to in paragraph (a) of the preceding subsection, the Commission shall act in consultation with the Provincial Council established under the Fijian Affairs Act.

(4)The boundaries of the constituencies shall be prescribed by the Commission as soon as practicable after the commencement of this Constitution; and thereafter the Commission may review the boundaries of the constituencies whenever it considers this to be desirable and shall do so not later than five years after it first prescribed those boundaries or, as the case may be, last reviewed them.

(5) Every order made by the Commission under this section shall be published in the Gazette and shall take effect for the purpose of elections to the House of Representatives subsequent to the next dissolution of parliament after it was made.

(6) In subsection (3) of this section "adult" means of over the age of twenty-one year.

BV for 32 of the 37 members elected from Fijian roll: FPTP for the remaining five, and all those elected from the other rolls.