Elections in Nauru

A constituency is an electoral district that returns a fixed number of members: Aiwo, Anabar, Anetan, Boe and Buada each return two members, Meneng returns three, Ubenide returns four, and Yaren returns two. The Electoral Commission organises registration, voter education, media regulation, polling, counting and publication of results. It consists of three Electoral Commissioners, while the Electoral Commissioner acts as Returning Officer. The Registrar administers the Electoral Roll. The Electoral Roll is based on the Births Register, and a Nauruan citizen is automatically registered at age 20. Registration is linked to a district through current residence of at least one month, residence before leaving Nauru, Nauruan custom, a parent or a spouse. A person may freely choose a district only when no other connection applies. Registration is free. An approved transfer costs $250, and a transfer cannot be made between two transfers within four years. Transfers are also unavailable after the roll closes at 17:00 or for a by-election. The roll for a general election closes at 17:00 on dissolution; for a by-election it closes 21 days before polling. The Electoral Commission publishes the roll at least once a year and may publish a provisional roll online. A person whose registration is refused or removed may apply to the Supreme Court within seven days. The Court must decide within seven days, and an application cannot be made less than ten days before polling day. A general election must take place within two months after Parliament is dissolved. Parliament may otherwise continue for a maximum of four years from its first sitting after dissolution, subject to earlier dissolution. The Speaker issues the writ on the President's advice. A candidate must be a Nauruan citizen aged at least 20, be enrolled in the relevant district and not fall within a constitutional disqualification such as certain insolvency, mental incapacity, serious criminal sanction, residence or domicile restrictions, or holding an office of profit. Nomination opens one day after dissolution and ends no later than three days after it. The candidate submits the required form, obtains the signatures of at least two voters from the constituency, signs the Code of Conduct and pays a non-refundable $500 fee. A declaration of intent under the electoral regulations can require a birth certificate and photo identification and may be submitted personally, by email, courier or proxy. Withdrawal is allowed within 24 hours after nominations. An unopposed candidate is elected automatically; if a constituency does not produce a valid result, a supplementary election may follow. Polling uses a secret ballot from 09:00 to 18:00. A voter still waiting at 18:00 may vote. The voter must attend the registered district, show identification and answer identity questions in English or Nauruan when required. Officials inspect and mark the voter's forefinger. Only one person may use a voting booth at a time. The ballot ranks all candidates with preference numbers from 1 to the final candidate. The rules can treat an omitted final preference as the last remaining preference; other incomplete ballots may be invalid. A ballot also becomes invalid when required authentication or an identification mark is missing. One replacement ballot is available for a spoiled ballot. Assisted voting is available for a voter who cannot mark the ballot because of illiteracy, blindness or a physical limitation. A voter absent from Nauru may use a proxy, and the proxy votes at the same time as for their own ballot. One voter may authorise no more than four proxy votes. Early voting is available for absence from Nauru, religious reasons or another regulated ground. Mobile polling can serve hospitals, care facilities, detention or correctional facilities, and a home where illness or imminent childbirth prevents attendance. An application for mobile polling on polling day must normally arrive at least 48 hours before 09:00. A remote witness may be used when no approved witness is available. The Electoral Commission regulates election communication on radio, television and the internet. Public-service employees may not use public resources for campaigning. Meetings, demonstrations and processions for canvassing, soliciting votes, pressuring voters or discovering voting intentions are prohibited within 200 metres of a polling station during early voting and on polling day. Bribery, impersonation and false information are criminal offences. After polling, sealed ballot boxes go to the Commission, which separates valid and invalid ballots. Observers may attend within a limit of five or any lower limit set by the Commission. A first preference has a value of 1, a second preference 1/2, a third 1/3 and so on. The candidates with the highest totals win the two, three or four seats available in their constituency. A tie is resolved by removing the last preference values, then earlier preference values, and finally by lot if necessary. An automatic manual recount occurs when a losing or excluded candidate is within 0.25% of the valid-vote margin. A candidate may request a recount within 24 hours. The Commission publicly declares the result and publishes the candidates elected and the valid and invalid vote totals in the Government Gazette. Election materials are kept securely and are generally destroyed after one year. A candidate or voter may file an election petition with the Supreme Court acting as the Court of Disputed Returns within 21 days after Gazette publication. The petitioner must provide $500 security for costs. After the election, Parliament elects the President from among its members; the Speaker and Deputy Speaker cannot be elected President. The President appoints up to eight MPs as Ministers, including one Vice President, and Cabinet is collectively responsible to Parliament. A no-confidence motion requires at least half of all members. If Parliament does not elect a President within seven days, Parliament is dissolved. A person who fails to vote without a valid reason receives a notice within one month and at least 14 days to respond. The maximum penalty is $100, rising to $200 for failing to respond or providing an insufficient reason. The latest general parliamentary election in Nauru was held on 11 October 2025, with results published by the Electoral Commission in the Government Gazette on 13 October 2025.