Ballot boxes open today in Papua New Guinea for the country’s national elections.
For weeks, thousands of people have disguised themselves and gathered at campaign rallies, but the country’s new government will not be known until August.
Here’s everything you need to know about PNG elections.
Who is running in the elections and who has been considered ineligible?
The current Prime Minister, James Marape, is one of the two candidates most likely to prevail.
A total of 3,625 people have applied to compete for the 118 seats in parliament.
PNG currently has 111 MPs, but seven new districts were created just weeks before the start of the election period.
Only 167 candidates are women, less than 5%.
Currently, PNG is one of four countries in the world that does not have women deputies, after a men’s parliament was elected in 2017.
Former Prime Minister Peter O’Neill, who is again campaigning for the top job, is the other favorite.
Three candidates are facing exclusion from the election due to criminal convictions, following a Supreme Court decision on eligibility this year.
One candidate was convicted of murder, another of rape and a third of conspiracy to swindle.
They are not the only candidates facing legal issues.
Acting MP Lohia Boe Samuel has been charged with murder after a shooting at a Port Moresby restaurant in March.
This lawsuit is still ongoing, so he has the right to re-contest his seat, which he is.
Meanwhile, another candidate in the highlands has been arrested and charged with murder during the campaign.
It came after shots were fired after a fight broke out after the second home game.
PNG does not have a system of two major parties like Australia.
Maholopa Laveil, a professor at the University of Papua New Guinea, said more than 50 parties were contesting these elections.
“About half of them are voted on,” he said.
“So in 2017 there were about 21 parties that were elected. That number grew to about 25 throughout parliament as MPs changed and formed new parties in parliament.”
Most are small, they only have one or two deputies, but larger parties with between 6 and 9 deputies can “hold a lot of power,” as coalitions are essential to forming — and staying in government, he said.
How long will the election last?
Elections are held every five years on PNG.
The campaign period has lasted the last six weeks.
Peter O’Neill’s National People’s Party is vying for more than 90 seats. (ABC News: Natalie Whiting)
During this time, large political rallies have been held across the country, with candidates grabbing helicopters, boats, buses and planes to reach every remote corner of PNG and talk to voters.
As of today, three weeks have been set aside for voting, with different areas for voting on different days, and one week for scrutiny.
But Election Commissioner Simon Sinai has now said he wants to try to complete the vote in two weeks because such a limited deadline has been set before the results are to be delivered legally, on July 29th.
The final voting schedule was not released until Friday: just 72 hours before the start of voting, and voting in the capital, Port Moresby, has been delayed from today until Wednesday.
Delays and apparent disorganization have caused some alarm.
“We are doing our best to do everything we can, with our resources and time available,” Sinai said.
More than 6,000 teams will be sent to conduct voting during the election.
PNG maintains a vibrant democracy, but its elections are considered one of the most difficult to hold in the world due to remoteness and difficult terrain, along with cultural diversity and poor infrastructure.
Supporters gather for the Pape de Marape party, which is vying for more than 80 seats. (ABC News: Natalie Whiting)
When the count is over, deputies will go to what are known as camps, where they will enter hotels to form coalitions.
The party with the most deputies will be called upon to form a government but will not have a majority in its own right, so the support of the smaller parties is vital.
The final composition of the government will be revealed at the first session of parliament in August.
What are the big issues for voters?
Parish issues generally dominate PNG elections.
Young mother Anna Ivan has been attending rallies of some of the more than 70 candidates vying for her Port Moresby area.
Most of the campaign events have been peaceful, but there have been some outbreaks of violence and about 30 people have died in clashes or traffic accidents. (ABC News: Natalie Whiting)
“We want services, the main thing is water in our homes, we live in a settlement and there is no water,” he said.
“The other issue is our young people. There are a lot of young people in the settlement, they don’t have jobs or good schools.”
Mr Laveil said PNG is called “clientelistic”, meaning “people tend to vote for what you give them in elections”.
Voters will often be influenced by a candidate who has contributed something tangible to their area or offered incentives.
People can also be influenced by family members or the opinions of community members.
With 1,000 tribes and 800 language groups, political culture varies across the country and there are also differences between rural and urban voters.
“Urban seats, there are more educated voters, and national and international issues tend to influence voters, but in rural seats, they are local issues,” Laveil said.
Will the elections be free, fair and secure?
The last PNG election in 2017 was affected by violence and allegations of widespread fraud and vote buying in some areas and many observers considered it the worst election recorded.
It is feared that there will be similar problems this election.
Most of the campaign events have been peaceful, but there have been some outbreaks of violence before the election.
An estimated 30 people have died so far, some in violent clashes, others in traffic accidents traveling to and from an event.
A minister’s convoy was set on fire in one area and an election official was shot in another.
About 7,000 PNG security personnel will work during the election. (ABC News: Natalie Whiting)
There is concern that the Common Register has not been updated properly and that some people are missing out on the opportunity to vote.
This could lead to violence during the voting.
“At least 1 million, that’s the estimate right now, they won’t be able to vote,” said Dr Henry Ivaature, a former election observer at Australia’s National University.
“The two governments [that have been in power since 2017] it did not provide the electoral commission with the financial resources to carry out a complete and complete update of the electoral census “.
Electoral Commissioner Simon Sinai defended the updated census but also admitted that he had wanted to draw up a new one but did not have the funding.
There have also been some issues and concerns with the transportation of ballots and the appointment of election officials.
Despite the problems and delays, Sinai told the ABC that it could not be “concluded” that the election could fail.
“People are prepared, materials are on the ground in the provinces,” he said.
But he did not rule out that some voters might fail.
“We will see which electorate fails, until we go to the polls we will not know when and who has failed.
“At the moment, I don’t think anything has gone wrong.”
About 7,000 PNG security personnel will work during the election and police have set a toll-free number for people to report election crimes.
Who will be the new prime minister?
The question of a million kines!
The two most likely candidates are current Prime Minister James Marape and the man he ousted, former Prime Minister Peter O’Neill.
James Marape’s campaign has benefited from him becoming prime minister and controlling government finances. (ABC News: Natalie Whiting)
The Marangu Pangu Party has more than 80 seats, while the O’Neill National People’s Congress has more than 90 seats.
Other important parties that are expected to have a significant number of MPs are the National Alliance Party, PeopleFirst, United Resources Party and PNG Party for Change.
The leaders of his parties will also hope to take the place of the prime minister.
PNG is known as the land of the unexpected and this is doubled when it comes to politics.
Former Prime Minister Peter O’Neill has a tough fight against the incumbent, but has mounted a well-funded and organized campaign. (AP: Craig Ruttle)
“Time between [when] the results are announced at the first session of parliament, that’s when horse trafficking begins, ”Laveil said.
During this time, MPs can change parties, coalitions will rise and fall and independents will form loyalties with different parties.
Headlines, such as Mr Marape’s party, are often re-elected to PNG, in part because they have control of government finances, which is a big advantage when it comes to campaigning.
But O’Neill’s party has created a very well-funded and well-organized campaign to challenge Marape.
What does it mean for geopolitics in the Pacific?
The elections are being closely watched due to geostrategic competition in the Pacific and the growing battle for influence between China and Western allies such as Australia and the US.
While he is painting how outsiders view elections, geopolitics is not a major issue for voters.
For a long time, PNG has maintained a foreign policy “friends of all and enemies of no one,” which it will want to maintain despite growing tension.
China is a major trading partner for PNG and helped fund Enga Hospital. (Supplied by: Chinese Embassy in PNG)
Prime Minister favorites have said they do not plan to make any significant changes in foreign relations or security ties.
Australia is PNG’s largest security partner, with full-time members of the Australian Federal Police and the country-based ADF.
It is a position that Australia wants to maintain.
Additional members and aircraft of the ADF are at PNG helping with the …