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General elections were held in Fiji on 29 August 1953.

Electoral system

The Legislative Council consisted of 32 members, including 16 'official' members who were civil servants, fifteen 'unofficial' members (five Europeans, five Fijians and five Indo-Fijians), and the Governor sitting as President of the Council.

For Europeans and Indo-Fijians, three of the five representatives were elected from single-member constituencies, with the other two appointed by the Governor. All five Fijian members were appointed from a list of ten candidates submitted by the Great Council of Chiefs.

Voting for Europeans remained restricted to men aged 21 or over who had been born to European parents (or a European father and was able to read, speak and write English), who were British subjects and had been continuously resident in Fiji for 12 months, and who either owned at least £20 of freehold or leasehold property or had an annual income of at least £120. For Indo-Fijians, eligibility was also restricted to men aged 21 or over. They had to be a British subject or from British India, have lived continuously in the Fiji for at least two years, be able to read or write in English, Gujarati, Gurmukhi, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu or Urdu, and for the previous six months, have either owned property with an annual value of five years, had a net annual cash income of at least £75, or held a Government or municipal licence worth at least £5 annually.

Campaign

Leaders of the Muslim Indo-Fijian community urged a boycott of the elections, calling for separate representation and for Urdu to be taught instead of Hindi.

Results

Nominated members

References

1. Fiji Election Results: Few Changes in New Legco Pacific Islands Monthly, September 1953, p16
2. ^ 1940 Legislative Council Election Fiji Elections Archive
3. Tropicalities Pacific Islands Monthly, September 1953, p75

v t e Elections in Fiji
General elections	1870 1871 (Jun-Jul) 1871 (Sep) 1905 1908 1911 1914 1917 1920 1923 1926 1929 1932 1937 1940 1944 1947 1950 1953 1956 1959 1963 1966 1972 1977 (Mar) 1977 (Sep) 1982 1987 1992 1994 1999 2001 2006 2014 2018 2022 Next
Local elections	1972 2002 2005

• 1953 elections in Oceania
• 1953 in Fiji
• Elections in Fiji
• 1953 elections in the British Empire
• August 1953 events in Oceania