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Cook Islands Party

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Cook Islands Party
AbbreviationCIP
LeaderMark Brown
FounderAlbert Henry
Founded15 June 1964 (1964-06-15)
Preceded byCook Islands Progressive Association
IdeologyCook Islands Māori nationalism[citation needed]
Political positionCentre to centre-right
Seats in the Cook Islands Parliament
13 / 24
Party flag
Website
cookislandsparty.com

The Cook Islands Party is a nationalist political party in the Cook Islands. It was the first political party founded in the Cook Islands, and one of the two major parties of the islands' politics since 1965.

From 1999 until 2005, it sometimes participated in coalition governments. In the 2006 elections, it came runner-up and largest opposition party in the islands. The party won both the 2010 and 2014 elections and currently forms the government. As a result of the 2018 elections, it is the second largest party in the Cook Islands Parliament. The leader of the party is the Prime Minister Mark Brown.

History

[edit]

The Cook Islands Party was established on 15 June 1964[1] by Albert Henry, a former leader of the Cook Islands Progressive Association, who had agitated for greater self-rule in the 1940s. The party was founded on a platform of economic development, maintaining ties with New Zealand, the protection of traditional Cook Islands culture and increased recognition of traditional titles.[2] Within a month of foundation, the party had gained over 2,000 members on Rarotonga.[3]

Prior to independence, the party campaigned for the three-year residential qualification for candidates to the Legislative Assembly to be reduced, in order to allow Henry, who had returned to the Cook Islands from New Zealand in March 1964, to stand.[4] They were unsuccessful, so Henry was replaced as a candidate in the 1965 election by his sister Marguerite Story.[5] The party won a strong majority of 14 seats, which they used to amend the constitution to reduce the residency requirement. Following the passage of the necessary legislation by the New Zealand Parliament, Story resigned.[5] Henry was elected in the consequent by-election and became the first Prime Minister of the Cook Islands.

The party dominated Islands politics for the next decade, but lost power at the 1978 election after it was discovered to have engaged in widespread electoral fraud. Albert Henry resigned as party leader and was replaced by his cousin Geoffrey Henry. He was subsequently convicted of conspiracy and misuse of public money and stripped of his knighthood.

The party spent the next decade in opposition, then held power again between 1989 and 1999. From 1999 until 2005 it sometimes participated in coalition governments. It won 10 seats in the 1999 election and 9 seats in the 2004 election. In 2006 it replaced its long-time leader, Geoffrey Henry, with Henry Puna, but Puna was defeated in the parliamentary election several months later along with the deputy leader. While he remained the party's leader, the Parliamentary Leader of the Opposition was Tom Marsters.[6]

At the 26 September 2006 election, the party won 45.3% of the popular vote and 7 out of 24 seats, making it the largest opposition party. In July 2010, following a dispute about candidate selection, Avatiu/Ruatonga MP Albert (Peto) Nicholas left the party and founded the Party Tumu.[7] The breakaway party attracted the support of influential CIP backer Tupui Ariki Henry, son of CIP founder and former prime minister Albert Henry.

CIP won the 2010 and 2014 elections, leading to two terms as prime minister for Henry Puna. In the 2018 election they won one seat less than the Democratic Party but were able to form a coalition government. They won 12 seats in the 2022 election and formed a coalition government with three independents.[8] The party won an outright majority of 13 seats in the 2026 election.[9]

Electoral performance

[edit]

Legislative Assembly

[edit]
Election Votes % Seats +/– Rank Government
1965 9,511 52,25
14 / 22
 New Increase 1st Majority
1968 12,202 64.45
16 / 22
 Increase 2 Steady 1st Majority
1972
15 / 22
 Decrease 1 Steady 1st Majority
1974
14 / 22
 Decrease 1 Steady 1st Majority
1978
15 / 22
 Increase 1 Steady 1st Majority
March 1983 50.1
13 / 24
 Decrease 2 Steady 1st Majority
Nov 1983 48.3
11 / 24
 Decrease 2 Decrease 2nd Opposition
1989
12 / 24
 Increase 1 Increase 1st Minority
1994 45.3
20 / 25
 Increase 8 Increase 1st Supermajority
1999
11 / 25
 Decrease 9 Steady 1st Minority
2004 3,647 43.9
9 / 24
 Decrease 2 Decrease 2nd Opposition
2006 3,846 45.3
7 / 24
 Decrease 2 Steady 2nd Opposition
2010 3,753 44.58
16 / 24
 Increase 9 Increase 1st Majority
2014 3,498 41.81
12 / 24
 Decrease 4 Steady 1st Minority
2018 3,654 42.30
10 / 24
 Decrease 2 Steady 1st Minority
2022 3,890 44.07
12 / 24
 Increase 2 Steady 1st Minority
2026 4,175 45.32
13 / 24
 Increase 1 Steady 1st Majority

Officeholders

[edit]

List of leaders

[edit]
No. Name Term of office
1 Albert Henry 1964[1] 1 January 1981[10]
Position vacant (1 January – August 1981)[a][10]
2 Geoffrey Henry August 1981[10] 31 August 2006[13]
3 Henry Puna September 2006[14] September 2020[15]
4 Mark Brown September 2020[15] incumbent

List of deputy leaders

[edit]
Name Term of office Leader
Tupui Henry c. August 1981[16] c. July 1983[17][18] Henry
Tupou Faireka September 2006[19] ? Puna
Mark Brown fl.18 November 2010[20]
Position vacant (c. 22 November 2010 – ?)[b][21]
Teariki Heather fl.September 2015[22]
Mark Brown fl.December 2018[23] – September 2020[24]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ↑ Although Albert Henry had moved away from parliamentary politics, he still retained the leadership of the party until his death on 1 January 1983. Geoffrey Henry, who had been serving as a de facto leader of the party, was not sworn in formally until a special party conference was held in August 1983. This has led to some sources stating that Geoffrey Henry became leader of the party in 1979.[11] The party itself has also stated that Albert Henry ceased being leader in 1978, with Geoffrey Henry becoming leader in 1978.[12]
  2. ↑ On 18 November 2010, Mark Brown was referred to as the party's deputy by Radio New Zealand. However, four days later, Radio New Zealand stated that the deputy leader position was vacant, with several, including Brown, fighting for the position.

References

[edit]
  1. 1 2 Stone, David (1965). "The Rise of the Cook Islands Party". Journal of the Polynesian Society. 74 (1): 92. Archived from the original on 10 February 2018.
  2. ↑ Stone (1965), p. 94.
  3. ↑ Stone (1965), p. 99.
  4. ↑ Stone (1965), p. 98.
  5. 1 2 Stone, David (1970). "Parties and politics in Polynesia: Political trends in the self-governing Cook Islands". Journal of the Polynesian Society. 79 (2): 131.
  6. ↑ "Cook Islands Parliament". Cook islands Government. Archived from the original on 29 March 2016. Retrieved 27 March 2016.
  7. ↑ "New party from CIP fallout". Cook Islands News. 3 July 2010. Archived from the original on 15 July 2010. Retrieved 11 July 2010.
  8. ↑ "Members of Parliament (1958 – present)". Parliament of the Cook Islands. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
  9. ↑ "Mark Brown's Cook Islands Party set to govern for historic fifth consecutive term". RNZ. 27 August 2026. Retrieved 27 August 2026.
  10. 1 2 3 "G. A. Henry new party leader". Pacific Islands Monthly. Vol. 52, no. 3. 1 March 1981. p. 35.
  11. ↑ Field, Michael (10 May 2012). "Former Cook Islands PM dies". Stuff. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  12. ↑ "Past Leaders". Archived from the original on 28 July 2025. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  13. ↑ Jonassen, Jon Tikivanotau M (Spring 2008). "Polynesia in Review: Cook Islands Issues and Events, 1 July 2006 to 30, June 2007". The Contemporary Pacific. 20 (1): 216–222. Archived from the original on 21 July 2020. Retrieved 28 August 2026 – via Pacific Islands Report.
  14. ↑ "Sir Geoffrey supports new Cook Islands Party leaders". Radio New Zealand. 4 September 2006. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  15. 1 2 "The Cook Islands PM to stand down in September". Radio New Zealand. 17 June 2020. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  16. ↑ "G. A. Henry new party leader". Pacific Islands Monthly. Vol. 52, no. 3. 1 March 1981. p. 35.
  17. ↑ "Cooks Crisis: Queen's Man Acts". Pacific Islands Monthly. Vol. 54, no. 9. 1 September 1983. p. 5. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  18. ↑ "Members of Parliament (1958 – present)". Parliament of the Cook Islands. 1983. Retrieved 22 August 2026. However, in July, CIP MP Matapo Matapo of Titikaveka died and Tupui Henry left the CIP to sit with the Democratic Party, leaving an 11–11 tie.
  19. ↑ "Sir Geoffrey supports new Cook Islands Party leaders". Radio New Zealand. 4 September 2006. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  20. ↑ "Cook Islands party deputy says people wanted a change". Radio New Zealand. 18 November 2010. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  21. ↑ "Cooks' Puna says talks will determine his deputy". Radio New Zealand. 22 November 2010. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  22. ↑ "Leadership poll" (PDF). Cook Islands Herald. 23 September 2015. p. 11. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 August 2026. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  23. ↑ "Browne new Rakahanga MP". Parliament of the Cook Islands. 29 December 2018. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  24. ↑ "The Cook Islands PM to stand down in September". Radio New Zealand. 17 June 2020. Retrieved 22 August 2026.

Further reading

[edit]
  • Stone, David (1965). "The Rise of the Cook islands Party". Journal of the Polynesian Society. 74 (1): 80–111.
[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Cook_Islands_Party&oldid=1372309017"