General elections were held in

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

on March 7, 2002, to elect members of the

Legislative Assembly of Tonga The Legislative Assembly of Tonga ( to, Fale Alea ʻo Tonga) is the unicameral legislature of Tonga. The assembly has 26 members in which 17 members elected by majority of the people for a 5-year term in multi-seat constituencies via the singl ...

. Supporters of the

Human Rights and Democracy Movement The Human Rights and Democracy Movement (HRDM) is a political party in Tonga. Its leader is Uliti Uata. The HRDM was founded in the late 1970s as an informal group of Tongans interested in democratic reform. It was formalised in 1992 as the Pro ...

(HDRM) won seven of the nine seats for people's representatives.

Voter turnout In political science, voter turnout is the participation rate (often defined as those who cast a ballot) of a given election. This can be the percentage of registered voters, eligible voters, or all voting-age people. According to Stanford Unive ...

was 48.9%. Following the election, HRDM leader 'Akilisi Pohiva was arrested and charged with

sedition Sedition is overt conduct, such as speech and organization, that tends toward rebellion against the established order. Sedition often includes subversion of a constitution and incitement of discontent toward, or insurrection against, estab ...

over allegations of royal corruption published during the run-up to the election. He was later acquitted by a jury.

References

{{Tongan elections

2002 in Tonga Elections in Tonga March 2002 events in Oceania