At Stake in this Election:  

• All 24 seats in the Cook Islands Parliament.  

Government Structure: 

• Chief of State: King Charles III (since 09 Sept 2023) 

• Head of Government: Prime Minister Mark BROWN (since 12 August 2022) 

• Assembly: unicameral Cook Islands Parliament (Cook Islands Māori: Te Marae Akarau Vānanga o te Kuki Airani) with 24 seats  

Electoral System: 

• The King is a hereditary monarch. They are represented by a Governor-General. 

• The Prime Minister is appointed by the Governor-General. They must be a member of the party or coalition that has or appears to have enough support to govern. 

• All 24 members of the Cook Islands Parliament are directly elected by plurality vote in single-member constituencies to serve a term of four years.   

Last Election:  

In the last election in 2022, the Cook Islands Party won the most seats with 12 seats, which was insufficient to form a majority in parliament. The Cook Islands Party subsequently formed a coalition with two elected Independent members of parliament to form a majority with 14 seats. Voter turnout was 77 percent. 

Information for Voters: 

General & By-Election Results, News & Updates 

Key Deadlines:  

• Candidate filing deadline: 13 July 2026 

• Voter registration deadline: 16 July 2026 

Main Parties in this Election:

• Cook Islands Party 

• • Leader: Mark Brown 

• • Seats won in the last election: 12 seats out of 24 

• Democratic Party  

• • Leader: Tina Brown 

• • Seats won in the last election: 5 out of 24 

• Cook Islands United Party 

• • Leader: Teariki Heather 

• • Seats won in the last election: 3 out of 24 

• One Cook Islands Movement 

• • Leader: George Turia 

• • Seats won in the last election: 1 out of 24 

• Progressive Party of the Cook Islands  

• • Leader: Te Tuhi Kelly 

• • Seats won in the last election: 0 out of 24 

• Independence Party: 

• • Seats won in the last election: N/A (new party) 

Country Context: 

• Population: 17,300 (2026 est.) 

• Registered Voters: 11,458 (2022 est.) 

• V-Dem Electoral Democracy Index Score: N/A 

• V-Dem Regimes of the World Classification: N/A 

• Human Development Index (HDI) Position: N/A 

Gender Data: 

• Female Population: Not available.  

• CEDAW Status: Accession on 11 August 2006  

• Gender Quota:  N/A 

• Female Candidates in this election: Yes, 14 women candidates 

• Number of Female Legislators (pre-election): 7 out of 24 (29%) in the Cook Islands Parliament  

• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: N/A 

Disability Data: 

• CRPD Status: Accession on 8 May 2009 

• Projected population with a disability: 2,768 (2026 est.)