A total of 192,584 people were registered across 298 polling stations. Voting selected 76 provincial representatives: 40 in the Southern Province, 22 in the Northern Province and 14 in the Loyalty Islands. A proportional allocation from those assemblies forms New Caledonia's 54-member Congress, which in turn produces a collegial territorial government and president.
Preliminary reporting said Sonia Backès retained control of the south through the combined Loyalists–Rassemblement list. In the north, Pascal Sawa and Paul Néaoutyine finished close together. In the Loyalty Islands, lists led by Mickaël Forrest and Omayra Naisseline received the same number of seats. Final official results were due from the French High Commission.
The vote was the first provincial ballot in seven years and had been delayed three times. It followed riots beginning in May 2024 that killed 14 people and caused damage estimated at €2.2 billion. Subsequent negotiations, including the 2025 Bougival Accord, altered the political timetable but did not remove deep divisions between independence and loyalist movements.
Authorities deployed about 2,500 police officers and gendarmes—roughly 16 squadrons compared with 12 under ordinary conditions—along with anti-crime and judicial-police units. Drones and Centaur armoured vehicles supported security around polling sites, with reinforcements expected to remain into early July.
An alcohol-sales ban was imposed through election day. The High Commission described the general pre-election atmosphere as calm but socially and economically sensitive. Cybersecurity officials also monitored possible interference and said they had not detected a significant campaign to undermine trust or manipulate voters.
One polling location at Vao on the Isle of Pines was moved to a school canteen after a nearby building was damaged by fire. Police arrested a teenager following the incident, and one gendarme was evacuated to Nouméa after being hit during stone throwing. Prosecutors said initial evidence suggested theft at the electricity company's office was the primary aim and damage to the polling facility was incidental.
Registered voters were concentrated in the south, which includes Nouméa: 127,474 there, compared with 43,016 in the north and 22,094 in the Loyalty Islands. Around 5,000 people were expected to vote by proxy from outside their home area or abroad.
The ballot filled seats, but its larger significance lay in restoring an elected territorial mandate after unrest and delay. Official certification and the formation of a new government would determine how preliminary provincial victories translated into power inside Congress.
