1959 Fijian general election
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General elections were held in Fiji in September 1959, the last in which women and ethnic Fijians were still barred from voting. Voting took place in the Eastern constituencies between 5 and 12 September, and in the Northern and Western and Southern constituencies on 12 September.[1]
Electoral system
The Legislative Council consisted of 32 members, including 16 'official' members who were civil servants, fifteen 'unofficial' members (five Europeans, five Fijians and five Indo-Fijians), and the Governor sitting as President of the Council.
For Europeans and Indo-Fijians, three of the five representatives were elected from single-member constituencies, with the other two appointed by the Governor. All five Fijian members were appointed from a list of ten candidates submitted by the Great Council of Chiefs.[2]
Voting for Europeans remained restricted to men aged 21 or over who had been born to European parents (or a European father and was able to read, speak and write English), who were British subjects and had been continuously resident in Fiji for 12 months, and who either owned at least £20 of freehold or leasehold property or had an annual income of at least £120.[2] For Indo-Fijians, eligibility was also restricted to men aged 21 or over. They had to be a British subject or from British India, have lived continuously in the Fiji for at least two years, be able to read or write in English, Gujarati, Gurmukhi, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu or Urdu, and for the previous six months, have either owned property with an annual value of five years, had a net annual cash income of at least £75, or held a Government or municipal licence worth at least £5 annually.[2]
Results
| Constituency | Candidate | Votes | % | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| European members | ||||
| Eastern | Harold Brockett Gibson | 240 | 58.5 | Re-elected |
| Leslie Martin | 170 | 41.5 | ||
| Informal votes | 27 | – | ||
| Northern and Western | Ronald Kermode | 292 | 56.7 | Re-elected |
| James Sinclair White | 197 | 38.3 | ||
| Nathaniel Chalmers | 26 | 5.0 | ||
| Informal votes | 20 | – | ||
| Southern | John Falvey | 462 | 74.0 | Re-elected |
| Sergius Tetzner | 162 | 26.0 | ||
| Informal votes | 31 | – | ||
| Total | 1,627 | 100 | ||
| Registered voters/turnout | 1,985 | 82.0 | ||
| Indo-Fijian members | ||||
| Eastern | Vijay R. Singh | 864 | 50.3 | Elected |
| Jamnadas Kanji | 494 | 28.8 | ||
| Muhammed Khan | 360 | 21.0 | ||
| Informal votes | 33 | – | ||
| Northern and Western | B. D. Lakshman | 2,637 | 38.4 | Elected |
| James Madhavan | 2,158 | 31.4 | Unseated[a] | |
| Ayodhya Prasad | 2,075 | 30.2 | Unseated | |
| Informal votes | 88 | – | ||
| Southern | Andrew Deoki | 1,877 | 58.3 | Elected |
| K. B. Singh | 950 | 29.5 | ||
| Chambadan Manakadan Gopalan | 221 | 6.9 | ||
| Devendra Pathik | 89 | 2.8 | ||
| Odin Ramrakha | 82 | 2.5 | ||
| Informal votes | 76 | – | ||
| Total | 12,004 | 100 | ||
| Registered voters/turnout | 14,069 | 85.3 | ||
| Source: Fiji Elections, Pacific Islands Monthly | ||||
- ^ Madhavan had been elected in the Eastern constituency in the 1956 elections but contested the Northern and Western seat in 1959.
Nominated members
| Europeans |
|---|
| Charles Cayzer |
| John Moore |
| Fijians |
| Edward Cakobau |
| George Cakobau |
| Penaia Ganilau |
| Semesa Sikivou |
| Ravuama Vunivalu |
| Indo-Fijians |
| Sathi Narain |
| A. H. Sahu Khan |
| Source: Fiji Elections |
Aftermath
A by-election was held in the Indian Eastern constituency in 1961, which was won by James Madhavan.[3]
References
- ^ Blood and Old Fiji LegCo Pacific Islands Monthly, August 1959, p143
- ^ a b c 1940 Legislative Council Election Fiji Elections Archive
- ^ 1959 Fiji Legislative Council elections Fiji Elections
