General elections were held in

Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...

in August 1948. They were the first under a new constitution, which established a Legislative Council with 19 elected members, 12 appointed members and 3 ''ex officio'' members, and expanded the franchise to all adults who could write their name in one of the island's languages.Mauritius: Toward Independence
Country Data They were won by the Labour Party led by

Guy Rozemont Guy Rozemont (1915–1956) was a Mauritian trade unionist and the third leader of the Mauritius Labour Party. He fought for workers' rights and voiced against the injustice done against them. He played a crucial role in shaping the government, ...

, with eleven of the 19 elected seats won by

Hindus Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

. However, the

Governor-General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

Donald Mackenzie-Kennedy Sir Henry Charles Donald Cleaveland Mackenzie-Kennedy (1889 – 2 August 1965) was a British colonial administrator who was Governor of Nyasaland List of Colonial Heads of Malawi (Nyasaland) (Dates in italics indicate ''de facto'' continuation ...

appointed twelve conservatives to the Council on 23 August, largely to ensure the dominance of English and French speakers. They were the first elections held under the new constitution and the first in which women stood as candidate.

Emilienne Rochecouste Marie Louise Emilienne Rochecouste (20 September 1892 – 28 February 1979) was a Mauritian politician. In 1948 she became the first woman elected to the Legislative Council, serving until 1953. Biography Born Marie Louise Emilienne Orian in 18 ...

, who ran as an independent, was elected in Plaines Wilhems–Black River, becoming the first Mauritian woman elected to the Legislative Council. Following the elections, Denise De Chazal was appointed as one of the twelve nominated members.

Results

The elections were held over two days, with

Port Louis Port Louis (french: Port-Louis; mfe, label= Mauritian Creole, Polwi or , ) is the capital city of Mauritius. It is mainly located in the Port Louis District, with a small western part in the Black River District. Port Louis is the country's ec ...

and

Plaines Wilhems Plaines Wilhems () is a district of Mauritius. It is the most populous district, with its population estimated at 366,506 as the end of 2018. The district is mainly urban; it consists of four towns, the village of Midlands and part of two other ...

- Rivière Noire voting on 9 August and the remainder voting on 10 August.Results of the General Election for the Mauritius Legislative Council held on 9/10 August
Electoral Commission

References

{{Mauritian elections

1948 Events January * January 1 ** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated. ** The Constitution of New Jersey (later subject to amendment) goes into effect. ** The railways of Britain are nationalized, to form British ...

1948 in Mauritius 1948 elections in Africa