Constitution of Fiji Main article - [[Constitution of Fiji: Preamble|Preamble]] Chapters[[Constitution of Fiji: Chapter 1|1]][[Constitution of Fiji: Chapter 2|2]][[Constitution of Fiji: Chapter 3|3]][[Constitution of Fiji: Chapter 4|4]][[Constitution of Fiji: Chapter 5|5]][[Constitution of Fiji: Chapter 6|6]][[Constitution of Fiji: Chapter 7|7]][[Constitution of Fiji: Chapter 8|8]] ::[[Constitution of Fiji: Chapter 9|9]][[Constitution of Fiji: Chapter 10|10]][[Constitution of Fiji: Chapter 11|11]][[Constitution of Fiji: Chapter 12|12]][[Constitution of Fiji: Chapter 13|13]][[Constitution of Fiji: Chapter 14|14]][[Constitution of Fiji: Chapter 15|15]][[Constitution of Fiji: Chapter 16|16]][[Constitution of Fiji: Chapter 17|17]]
Foreign affairs Main article Diplomatic relations of Fiji
The general election to the FijianLegislative Council in 1966 was the last to be held before independence from the United Kingdom was granted in 1970. It was not the first election to be held under colonial rule, but it marked the first time that all adult citizens were allowed to vote. Previously, the franchise had been limited to European settlers, Fijianchiefs, and wealthy Indo-Fijians. Women also voted in this election for the first time.
The main contest was between the Fijian Alliance, dominated by indigenous Fijians and supported also by most General Electors, and the Indo-Fijian-dominated National Federation Party. The Alliance, led by the Lauan chief, Ratu Kamisese Mara, won a landslide victory, taking 25 of the 34 directly elected seats (an additional 2 seats, nominated by the Great Council of Chiefs, were also filled by Alliance members). The remaining 9 seats were won by the NFP, led by Dr A. D. Patel. The NFP won all 9 Indo-Fijian communal constituencies - allocated to and elected exclusively by voters registered as Indo-Fijians - and no other seats. This ethnic cleavage set the pattern which persists to this day; electoral politics in Fiji remains divided more by race than by ideology.
