| Niuas Nobles | |
|---|---|
| Constituency for the Legislative Assembly of Tonga | |
| Region | Niuas |
| Electorate | 3 |
| Current constituency | |
| Created | 1914? |
| Number of members | 1 |
| Member(s) | Lord Fusituʻa |
Niuas is an electoral constituency which sends one representative to the Legislative Assembly of Tonga. It covers the islands of Niuafoʻou and Niuatoputapu.[1]
Since its inception in 1875, the Assembly has consisted in representatives of the people and in members of the nobility. Following constitutional reforms in 2010, designed to strengthen democracy in the kingdom, the nobility elect nine representatives, while the people elect seventeen. The nobles' constituency in the Niuas thus overlaps with a peoples' constituency, which also elects a single representative.[1]
Members of the nobility whose title is attached to lands in the constituency may vote there, and be elected as the constituency's representative. Nobles do not formally stand as candidates, however, and never belong to any political party. Following the 2010 electoral reforms, any person holding more than one title, corresponding to lands in several constituencies, may only vote in one constituency. The titles corresponding to the Niuas are Fotofili, Fusituʻa, Maʻatu and Tangipa, meaning that the constituency may have up to four voters. At present, the holder of the title of Fotofili also holds the title of Kalaniuvalu, which entitles him to vote in the Tongatapu constituency. The Maʻatu title is vacant. Thus, the constituency actually consists in between two and three voters.[1][2]