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This article lists political parties in the Cook Islands . The Cook Islands have a two-party system, which means that there are two dominant political parties. It is extremely difficult for candidates to achieve electoral success under the banner of any other party.
| Logo | Name | Abbr. | Est. | Leader | Ideology | MPs | Political position | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Cook Islands Party | CIP | 1965 | Mark Brown | Cook Islands Māori nationalism | 12 / 24 | Centre to Centre-right | |
 | Democratic Party | DP | 1971 | Tina Browne | Social liberalism | 5 / 24 | Centre to Centre-left | |
| Cook Islands United Party | CIUP | 2018 | Teariki Heather | 3 / 24 | ||||
 | One Cook Islands Movement | OCI | 2014 | George Turia | 4 / 140 | |||
| Extant | |
|---|---|
| Defunct | |
The Cook Islands are named after Captain James Cook, who visited the islands in 1773 and 1777, although Spanish navigator Alvaro de Mendaña was the first European to reach the islands in 1595. The Cook Islands became aligned to the United Kingdom in 1890, largely because of the fear of British residents that France might occupy the islands as it already had Tahiti.
The politics of the Cook Islands takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democracy within a constitutional monarchy. The Monarch of New Zealand, represented in the Cook Islands by the King or Queen's Representative, was the Head of State; the prime minister is the head of government of a multi-party system. The nation is self-governing and are fully responsible for internal and foreign affairs. Since 2001, the Cook Islands has run its own foreign and defence policy. Executive power is exercised by the government, while legislative power is vested in both the government and the islands' parliament. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislatures.
Dame Georgina Manunui te Heuheu is a New Zealand National Party politician. She was a Member of Parliament (MP) between 1996 and 2011, and a Cabinet Minister in the New Zealand Government.
Jim Marurai was a Cook Islands politician who served as Prime Minister of the Cook Islands. He was a member of the Democratic Party.
The Tumu Enua was a political party located in the Cook Islands. It was led by Norman George, a former member of the Democratic Party who had previously founded the breakaway New Alliance Party. The New Alliance Party was eventually responsible for reuniting with the Democrats, but George himself contested the 2004 elections under the Tumu Enua banner. The party won only 2.4% of popular votes and no seats. Norman George later joined the Cook Islands Party, the main rival of the Democrats.
The Democratic Party is a political party in the Cook Islands. As a result of the 2022 Cook Islands election, it is currently in opposition, holding five seats in the Cook Islands Parliament.
The Cook Islands Party is a nationalist political party in the Cook Islands. It was the first political party founded in the Cook Islands, and one of the two major parties of the islands' politics since 1965.
Joseph Williams was a Cook Islands politician and physician who served as Prime Minister of the Cook Islands for four months in 1999. He is credited with having worked to prevent the spread of the tropical disease lymphatic filariasis (elephantiasis). He principally resided in Auckland, New Zealand, where he was medical director of the Mt Wellington Integrated Family Health Centre.
The Cook Islands First Party was a political party in the Cook Islands. The party was originally a faction within the Cook Islands Democratic Party which supported Prime Minister Robert Woonton over Terepai Maoate. The 2004 elections saw the Democrats win a clear majority, but it was not clear whether Woonton would have the numbers within the party to remain Prime Minister. Woonton's announcement on 15 November 2004 that he was forming a coalition with the rival Cook Islands Party with himself as Prime Minister. This touched off a bitter struggle within the Democrats, which ultimately saw Woonton and his Health Minister Peri Vaevae Pare expelled from the party. Woonton responded by launching his own party, the Demo Tumu Party, on 1 December 2004.
The Parliament of the Cook Islands is the legislature of the Cook Islands. Originally established under New Zealand administration, it became the national legislature upon independence in 1965.
Norman George is a Cook Islands politician and former Speaker of the Cook Islands Parliament, Deputy Prime Minister, and Cabinet Minister.
General elections were held in the Cook Islands on 20 April 1965 to elect 22 MPs to the Cook Islands Legislative Assembly. The elections were won by the Cook Islands Party and saw Albert Henry become the Cook Islands' first Premier.
Wilkie Olaf Patua Rasmussen is a Cook Islands politician and former Cabinet Minister. From 2013 to 2015 he was leader of the Cook Islands Democratic Party.
Albert (Peto) Nicholas was a Cook Islands politician. He was member of the Cook Islands Parliament for the seat of the seat of Avatiu–Ruatonga–Palmerston for 18 years.
Sir Apenera Pera Short was a Cook Islands politician and from 1990 to 2000 was the Queen's Representative in the Cook Islands.
The Party Tumu was a political party in the Cook Islands. It was founded in July 2010 by Cook Islands Party MP Albert (Peto) Nicholas after a split over candidate selection. Originally known as the "Cook Islands Party Tumu", the party was forced to rename itself after the CIP successfully sought a court injunction preventing them from using the name Cook Islands Party.
Tania M. Ka'ai, sometimes known as Tania Kaai-Oldman, is a New Zealand education academic. She is a full professor of language revitalisation at the Auckland University of Technology.
Peri Vaevae Pare was a Cook Islands politician and Cabinet Minister. He was stripped of his seat in Parliament after being convicted of corruption in 2005.
Te Aponga Uira O Tumu-Te-Varovaro (TAU) is a Cook Islands electricity generator, distributor and retailer which provides electricity to the island of Rarotonga. It is responsible for 90% of the Cook Islands' electricity generation. It is a state-owned enterprise, wholly owned by the Cook Islands Government through the Cook Islands Investment Corporation.
