Unspoken Rules of Politics: Uncovering the Motivations of Voters in Vanuatu's Elections

Women are elected rarely to the Parliament of Vanuatu. When they are, they are in a significant minority. No more than two women have ever been elected at a time in a parliament comprised of just over 50 members and a number of parliamentary terms have seen the election of men only.

While research has considered this from the perspective of women candidates and representatives in Vanuatu, little research has considered the motivations of voters in casting their ballots – or not – for women. This research begins to fill that gap.

A Pacific approach to the question of democratic participation helps us to orient this project towards a focus on the motivations of voters, and more specifically, the decision making process prior to casting a vote. This approach allows us to understand both the collective’s, as well as an individual’s, contribution to that process, and the nature and strength of the relationships that support voters’ decision making.

This research considers both the motivations of voters, but also their aspirations for more inclusive governance in Vanuatu. The research finds that voters, on the whole, are disillusioned with current political practices, rules and norms – and do want to see change. For many of the people involved in this research, there is room for women in this vision of change.