French Polynesia: Government#
| Country name | conventional long form: Overseas Lands of French Polynesia conventional short form: French Polynesia local long form: Pays d'outre-mer de la Polynesie Francaise local short form: Polynesie Francaise former: French Colony of Oceania etymology: the term "Polynesia" is an 18th-century construct composed of two Greek words, "poly" (many) and "nesoi" (islands), and refers to the more than 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean |
|---|---|
| Dependency status | overseas lands of France; overseas territory of France from 1946-2003; overseas collectivity of France since 2003, though it is often referred to as an overseas country due to its degree of autonomy |
| Government type | parliamentary democracy (Assembly of French Polynesia); an overseas collectivity of France |
| Capital | Papeete (located on Tahiti)
Papeete (located on Tahiti)
geographic coordinates: 17 32 S, 149 34 W time difference: UTC-10 (5 hours behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time) |
| Administrative divisions | Iles Australes, Iles du Vent, Iles Marquises, Iles Sous-le-Vent, Iles Tuamotu-Gambier |
| Independence | none (overseas lands of France) |
| National holiday | Fete de la Federation, 14 July (1789); note - the local holiday is Internal Autonomy Day, 29 June (1880) |
| Constitution | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) |
| Legal system | the laws of France, where applicable, apply |
| Citizenship | see France |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Francois HOLLANDE (since 15 May 2012), represented by High Commissioner of the Republic Rene BIDALL (since 30 May 2016) head of government: President of French Polynesia Edouard FRITCH (since 12 September 2014) cabinet: Council of Ministers approved by the Assembly from a list of its members submitted by the president elections/appointments: French president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; French Polynesia president indirectly elected by Assembly of French Polynesia for a 5-year term (no term limits) |
| Legislative branch | description: unicameral Assembly of French Polynesia or Assemblee de la Polynesie Francaise (57 seats; elections held in two rounds; in the second round, 38 members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote; the party receiving the most votes gets an additional 19 seats; members serve 5-year terms) elections: last held on 21 April 2013 and 5 May 2013 (next to be held in 2018) election results: percent of vote by party - Popular Rally 45.1%, UPD 29.3%, A Tia Porinetia 25.6%; seats by party - Popular Rally 38, UPD 11, A Tia Porinetia 8 note: two seats were elected to the French Senate for a 6-year term on 20 September 2014 (next to be held in September 2022); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Popular Rally 1, People's Servant Party 1; two seats were elected to the French National Assembly for a 5-year term on 17 June 2012 (next to be held by June 2017); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 2; the Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) is France's ruling party, |
| Judicial branch | highest court(s): Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel (composition NA); note - appeals beyond the French Polynesia Court of Appeal are heard by the Court of Cassation (in Paris) judge selection and term of office: judges assigned from France normally for 3 years subordinate courts: Court of the First Instance or Tribunal de Premiere Instance; Court of Administrative Law or Tribunal Administratif |
| Political parties and leaders | A Tia Porinetia (Teva ROHFRITSCH) Alliance for a New Democracy or ADN (includes the parties The New Star and This Country is Yours) New Fatherland Party (Ai'a Api) (Emile VERNAUDON) Our Home alliance People's Servant Party (Tavini Huiraatira) (Oscar TEMARU) Popular Rally (Tahoeraa Huiraatira) (Gaston FLOSSE) Tavini Huiraatira (James CHANCELOR) Union for Democracy alliance or UPD (Oscar TEMARU) |
| International organization participation | ITUC (NGOs), PIF (associate member), SPC, UPU, WMO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas lands of France) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas lands of France) |
| Flag description | two red horizontal bands encase a wide white band in a 1:2:1 ratio; centered on the white band is a disk with a blue and white wave pattern depicting the sea on the lower half and a gold and white ray pattern depicting the sun on the upper half; a Polynesian canoe rides on the wave pattern; the canoe has a crew of five represented by five stars that symbolize the five island groups; red and white are traditional Polynesian colors note: similar to the red-white-red flag of Tahiti, the largest of the islands in French Polynesia, which has no emblem in the white band; the flag of France is used for official occasions |
| National symbol(s) | outrigger canoe; national colors: red, white |
| National anthem | name: "Ia Ora 'O Tahiti Nui" (Long Live Tahiti Nui) lyrics/music: Maeva BOUGES, Irmine TEHEI, Angele TEROROTUA, Johanna NOUVEAU, Patrick AMARU, Louis MAMATUI, and Jean-Pierre CELESTIN (the compositional group created both the lyrics and music) note: adopted 1993; serves as a local anthem; as a territory of France, "La Marseillaise" is official (see France) |
| Government - note | under certain acts of France, French Polynesia has acquired autonomy in all areas except those relating to police, monetary policy, tertiary education, immigration, and defense and foreign affairs; the duties of its president are fashioned after those of the French prime minister |