Papua New Guinea - August 2022

James Marape was reelected as Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea in an election that did not significantly improve on previous elections’ struggles with violence and electoral management. Outdated voter rolls disenfranchised as many as one million voters and there were about 50 election-related deaths. However, the election was less violent than 2017, when roughly 200 died in election-related violence. The incoming government will need to address the underlying causes of the country’s electoral chaos, which observers attribute to under-investment in public services and deeply rooted patriarchal political traditions.  

Sources: The Guardian, CIVICUS