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KUALA LUMPUR, AUGUST 2026 — Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown is expected to lead the South Pacific nation for a second term after his ruling Cook Islands Party won more seats than any other political group in this week’s election.
The nationalist Cook Islands Party, which has governed since 2010, secured 12 of the country’s 24 parliamentary seats in preliminary results. A total of 13 seats is required for an outright majority, while voting in one constituency remained unresolved because bad weather delayed electoral officials from reaching Nassau island.
Brown’s party has previously relied on support from independent lawmakers to pass legislation, meaning it could still form a government even without securing 13 seats on its own. The result would give the party a fifth consecutive term in power.
The election was closely watched amid concerns over inflation and the rising cost of living, including higher prices for food, electricity, water and transport. Economic uncertainty across the Pacific has also been intensified by disruptions linked to the war in Iran and the region’s heavy dependence on imported fuel and other goods.
Preliminary results showed the Cook Islands United Party winning four seats, up from three in the previous election. The Democratic Party, which previously held five seats and led the opposition, failed to retain representation in Parliament. Its leader, Tina Pupuke-Browne, lost her constituency by just three votes.
The election also served as a political test for Brown following tensions with New Zealand over cooperation agreements signed with China in 2025. Wellington temporarily froze millions of dollars in funding after Brown entered the agreements without prior consultation, raising concerns over security and China’s growing influence in the Pacific.
Relations later improved after the Cook Islands and New Zealand signed a defence agreement clarifying that Wellington would remain the country’s preferred security partner. The election result suggests the dispute had limited impact on Brown’s domestic support.
Brown, 63, comfortably retained his Takuvaine constituency and is also a supporter of developing deep-sea mining in the Cook Islands’ large exclusive economic zone, an issue that continues to divide political and environmental leaders across the Pacific.
