Legislative elections were held in French Oceania on 18 January 1953, the first to the new

Territorial Assembly A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or an ...

, which replaced the Representative Assembly.M. Poroi's victory in Tahiti
''Pacific Islands Monthly'', February 1953, p90

Results

The result was a victory for the

Democratic Rally of the Tahitian People The Democratic Rally of the Tahitian People (french: Rassemblement démocratique des populations tahitiennes, abbreviated RDPT) was a political party in French Oceania/French Polynesia. The party was led by Pouvanaa a Oopa. Political profile Pouv ...

(RDPT) led by

Pouvanaa a Oopa Pouvana'a a O'opa (May 10, 1895 – January 10, 1977) was a Tahitian politician and advocate for French Polynesian independence. He is viewed as the ''metua'' (father) of French Polynesia's independence movement. Pouvanaa served as a Deputy ...

, which won 18 of the 25 seats.Tension in French Oceania
''Pacific Islands Monthly'', April 1953, p15 The Democratic and Socialist Union of the Resistance won five seats and the Rally of the French People two; the two parties had run together as the Union for the Defence of the Interests of French Oceania (UDIOF). Oopa failed to win a seat in Papeete, and subsequently stated that he would complain about election fraud to the French government.Jean-Marc Regnault (2003)
Pouvanaa a Oopa: Victime de la raison d’Etat Les documents parlent
', p20 Governor René Petitbon organised an official enquiry, which concluded that the allegations were unfounded.Lively politics in Tahiti
''Pacific Islands Monthly'', May 1953, p101

By constituency

Aftermath

Following the elections, the Assembly convened for the first time on 14 March. Jean-Baptiste Céran-Jérusalémy, a member of the RDPT, was elected President of the Assembly two days later. Following a dispute in the Assembly on 10 April, a fight broke out between Noël Ilari and

Alfred Poroi Alfred may refer to: Arts and entertainment *''Alfred J. Kwak'', Dutch-German-Japanese anime television series * ''Alfred'' (Arne opera), a 1740 masque by Thomas Arne * ''Alfred'' (Dvořák), an 1870 opera by Antonín Dvořák *"Alfred (Interlu ...

. Ilari then challenged Poroi to a duel, which Poroi agreed should take place at the end of the day. However, the Governor broadcast a radio message, banning it from taking place and stationing police at the homes of the two.

References

{{French Polynesian elections

French Polynesia )Territorial motto: ( en, "Great Tahiti of the Golden Haze") , anthem = , song_type = Regional anthem , song = " Ia Ora 'O Tahiti Nui" , image_map = French Polynesia on the globe (French Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of Frenc ...

Elections in French Polynesia Legislative