Fiji will hold Local Government Elections in September, officials announced, marking the first municipal polls in 21 years and an opportunity for young voters to shape neighbourhood-level governance. Seema Sharma, appointed chair of the Local Government Elections, is urging youths — and particularly first-time voters — to learn about municipal councils and take an active part in the electoral process as candidates or electors.
Sharma warned that many young people may not be familiar with the functions of local councils or the services they deliver. “The youth obviously is something very new for them, especially the first-time voters this year around who’ve never voted in a local government election. They have to understand what their councils are, what kind of service they provide, and how they can also become part of those councils because you need to understand how development takes place in those councils,” she said.
Local government contests differ from national elections, Sharma explained, because councillors represent specific wards within municipal boundaries and make decisions that directly affect neighbourhoods. Ward-based representation, she said, offers residents a clearer channel to raise everyday concerns — from local infrastructure and waste management to community development projects — and to hold elected councillors accountable for delivery at the street and suburb level.
Officials expect about 141 councillors to be elected across municipalities nationwide in the September polls. Sharma framed the vote as an opening for young people to influence where and how local development happens. “So the youth need to be able to come up and say yes I want to contribute either by voting or being part of that council,” she said, urging eligible voters to register ahead of the election and for potential candidates to consider standing.
The push to mobilise young voters builds on broader efforts to strengthen civic participation. Earlier initiatives from electoral authorities have focused on deepening community engagement and trust in the electoral process, including programmes to deploy local volunteers and advocates to inform voters about registration, voting procedures and the roles of different levels of government. Election officials say these outreach measures will be ramped up in the lead-up to September to reach first-time voters and marginalised communities.
The return of municipal elections after two decades is being seen by supporters as a chance to revitalise local democracy and improve service delivery through closer community representation. With multiple wards across the country set to elect councillors, stakeholders say the level of youth turnout and candidate participation will be an early indicator of how actively a new generation intends to engage with Fiji’s local government system.
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