General elections were held in the Cook Islands on 11 April 1972.Cooks battle
''Pacific Islands Monthly'', March 1972, p125 The result was a victory for the ruling

Cook Islands Party The Cook Islands Party is a nationalist political party in the Cook Islands. It was the first political party founded in the Cook Islands, and one of the two major parties of the islands' politics since 1965. From 1999 until 2005 it sometimes ...

(CIP), which won 15 of the 22 seats in the Legislative Assembly. The newly formed Democratic Party won seven seats. CIP leader Albert Henry remained Premier.

Background

The Assembly elected in

May 1968 The following events occurred in May 1968: May 1, 1968 (Wednesday) *In Dallas, at its first meeting since its creation through a merger, the United Methodist Church removed its rule that Methodist ministers could not drink alcohol nor sm ...

had a three-year term, with the next elections expected in 1971. However, in March 1969 a bill was approved to extend the parliamentary term to four years.

Campaign

Prior to the elections the United Cook Islanders party was disbanded, with its members joining the new Democratic Party founded by Thomas Davis after he returned to the Cook Islands from the United States.All the fun of party politics in the Cooks
''Pacific Islands Monthly'', March 1972, pp24, 108 All candidates except a single independent (Edwin Gold in Mangaia) were from the CIP or Democratic Party. Incumbent MPs standing down included Director for Health and Aitutaki MP Joseph Williams and Teau-o-Tonga MP Teaukara.

Results

Elected members

Aftermath

Following the elections, Henry formed a new cabinet, in which he held fifteen portfolios. The other ministers were Inatio Akaruru (Minister of Health), William Estall (Minister of Agriculture, Marketing Board Co-operatives and Shipping),

Geoffrey Henry Sir Geoffrey Arama Henry (16 November 1940 – 9 May 2012) was a Cook Island politician who was twice the Prime Minister of the Cook Islands. He was leader of the Cook Islands Party (CIP) from 1979 to 2006. Early life Henry was a native of ...

(Minister of Education, Justice, Lands and Survey), Tupua Henry (Minister of Housing, Internal Affairs and Public Works), Tiakana Numanga (Minister of Fisheries and Police) and Apenera Short (Minister of Broadcasting, Electric Power Supply, Government Printer and Newspaper Corporation).In a Nutshell
''Pacific Islands Monthly'', pp127–129

References

{{Cook Islands elections Elections in the Cook Islands

General election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from By-election, by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. Gener ...

Cook Islands The Cook Islands is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of 15 islands whose total land area is approximately . The Cook Islands' Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) covers of ocean. Avarua is its ...

Election and referendum articles with incomplete results