Riya Bhagwan 
Dialogue Fiji is conducting pre-election training to strengthen public understanding. [Photo: FILE]
Many women and young people are entering or aspiring to enter the political arena without a full understanding of the electoral system.
Many remain unclear about how votes translate into parliamentary seats, the laws governing elections, and the strict rules candidates must follow.
To address this gap, Dialogue Fiji is conducting pre-election training to strengthen public understanding ahead of the general election.
Close to fifty participants attended the third introductory training in Nadi today.
Executive Director Nilesh Lal says the Open List Proportional Representation system remains widely misunderstood despite being used in three previous elections.
“Because a lot of candidates were ill-equipped to be contesting elections in Fiji, this is actually akin to going out into the field of play. Maybe they used to play rugby without knowing the rules of rugby, and that is essentially the kind of situation that we have.”
Lal stresses that participants must also understand the penalties and regulations governing candidates before entering the political arena.
He says the training focuses on how votes are counted, how electoral calculations determine final results, and strategies to increase candidates’ chances of winning.
Participants say the session helped them better understand how government functions, how leaders are elected, and the specific calculation methods used in Fiji’s electoral process.
Dialogue Fiji will continue these trainings in the coming months to prepare aspiring candidates and voters ahead of the election.
