King's Representative

King's Representative in the Cook Islands
Te Kauono o te Ariki (Cook Islands Māori) [1]
Coat of arms of the Cook Islands
Flag of the king's representative
Incumbent Sir Tom Marsters since 27 July 2013
Viceroy
Seat	Avarua
Nominator	Prime Minister of the Cook Islands
Appointer	Monarch on the advice of the prime minister
Term length	3 years renewable
Precursor	High Commissioner of the Cook Islands
Formation	1982
First holder	Gaven Donne

The king's representative is the official representative of Charles III , as King of the realm of New Zealand, in the Cook Islands. ^[2] The office of King's Representative is established by the Constitution of the Cook Islands. They are appointed by the King for a term of three years, and may be reappointed. ^[3] When the Cook Islands has a queen regnant, the viceroy is titled queen's representative.

The king's representative fills the role normally filled by a governor-general in the Westminster system of a Commonwealth realm, being both a representative of the monarch and the titular head of executive government. They appoint the prime minister and Cabinet ^[4] and chair the Cook Islands Executive Council. ^[5] In performing their duties, they must act on advice. ^[6]

Originally these duties were performed by the high commissioner of New Zealand to the Cook Islands, but in 1982 these powers were repatriated. ^[7] The governor-general of New Zealand still represents the king in matters pertaining to the entire realm. ^{[8] [9]}

Following the death of Elizabeth II, the office formally became known as "King's Representative". ^[10]

In August 2025, Tom Marsters was reappointed as the representative for a fifth three-year term. ^[11]

List of sovereign's representatives in the Cook Islands

№	Portrait	Name	Term of office			Monarch	Prime Minister
			Took office	Left office	Length of office
1		Sir Gaven Donne (1914–2010)	1982	18 September 1984	2 years, 258 days	Elizabeth II	Sir Tom Davis
							Geoffrey Henry
							Sir Tom Davis
2		Sir Graham Speight (1921–2008) Acting	18 September 1984	19 December 1984	92 days
3		Sir Tangaroa Tangaroa (1921–2009)	19 December 1984	19 December 1990	6 years, 1 day
							Pupuke Robati
							Sir Geoffrey Henry
4		Sir Apenera Pera Short (1916–2011)	19 December 1990	14 November 2000	9 years, 327 days
							Joe Williams
							Sir Terepai Maoate
5		Laurence Greig (born 1929) Acting	14 November 2000	9 February 2001	88 days
6		Sir Frederick Tutu Goodwin (born 1940)	9 February 2001	27 July 2013	12 years, 169 days
							Robert Woonton
							Jim Marurai
							Henry Puna
7		Sir Tom Marsters (born 1945)	27 July 2013	Incumbent	12 years, 34 days
							Mark Brown
						Charles III

See also

• Monarchy in the Cook Islands

References

1. "Kauono". Dictionary of Cook Islands languages. Retrieved 1 February 2023.
2. "About Parliament". parliament.gov.ck. Parliament of the Cook Islands . Retrieved 9 September 2023.
3. "Constitution of the Cook Islands". PACLII. Retrieved 3 August 2020.
4. Constitution of the Cook Islands, section 13.
5. Constitution of the Cook Islands, section 25.
6. Constitution of the Cook Islands, section 5.
7. "Constitution Amendment (No 10) Act 1981-82". PACLII. Retrieved 3 August 2020.
8. "Government of the Cook Islands". Jarvy Web. 11 October 2014.
9. Townend, Andrew (2003). "The strange death of the Realm of New Zealand: The implications of a New Zealand republic for the Cook Islands and Niue" (PDF). Victoria University of Wellington Law Review. 34 (3): 571–607. doi:10.26686/vuwlr.v34i3.5768. hdl:10063/5877 . Retrieved 26 August 2016.
10. "'QR' effectively becomes 'KR'". Cook Islands News. 10 September 2022. Retrieved 11 September 2022.
11. Tairi, Teitimoana (6 August 2025). "Sir Tom Marsters reappointed as King's Representative". Cook Islands News . Retrieved 31 August 2025.