Africa-Press – Mauritius. The Acting Prime Minister, Paul Bérenger, initiated discussions on electoral reform in Mauritius and Rodrigues yesterday during a press conference at the Treasury Building. He emphasized the government’s promise for a sound electoral reform as a key part of the Alliance of Change’s program. Bérenger stressed that the government does not want to wait until just before the next elections to introduce a well-structured reform.
He announced that a Cabinet Paper will be presented to enable thorough debates followed by extensive consultations both in Mauritius and Rodrigues. Bérenger highlighted that significant progress had been made in 2016 by the Mauritian Militant Movement (MMM) and the Labour Party (PTR), but reform proposals faced obstacles due to the Best Loser System. He pointed out that debates on abolishing this system date back to before 1982.
The Acting Prime Minister explained that when the MMM-MSM government was elected with a 60-0 victory, the issue of the Best Loser system was hotly debated and even led to protests outside Parliament. However, it was not abolished because the government lacked a mandate. He criticized the First Past the Post system, which allowed a landslide victory without any opposition members being elected, as happened in the November 2024 general elections despite the opposition securing 27% of the votes. This underlines the need for proportional representation.
Bérenger also outlined electoral system proposals, including one from 2014 by the MMM-PTR alliance, which suggested electing 60 candidates in 20 constituencies plus two in Rodrigues, with an additional 20 deputies chosen proportionally. To partially preserve the Best Loser system, it was proposed that the 20 proportional seats be split, allowing party leaders to select candidates to correct community under-representation. Another proposal involves electing 60 candidates from constituencies, three from Rodrigues, 20 deputies proportionally, and four additional deputies to restore community balance based on the 1972 census. Candidates may choose not to declare their communities but would lose eligibility for the four Best Loser seats.
Lastly, Paul Bérenger reviewed the history of the Best Loser system since 1948, designed to address Muslim under-representation in elections. While acknowledging its role in maintaining social stability and preventing racial conflicts, he condemned the Israeli aggression against Qatar and expressed Mauritius’ solidarity with the territory. Bérenger also noted that Mauritius has long recognized Palestine and the PLO, in contrast to some recent European moves towards recognition. He referred to the recent UK parliamentary majority vote on related issues and mentioned an upcoming visit to the archipelago later this year.
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