Tonga Government

What is the capital of Tonga?

Country Name	Tonga
Full Country Name	Kingdom of Tonga
Local - Long	Pule'anga Fakatu'i 'o Tonga
Local - Short	Tonga
Former Name	Friendly Islands
Etymology- history of name	"tonga" means "south" in the Tongan language and refers to the country's geographic position in relation to central Polynesia
Government Type	constitutional monarchy
Capital Name	Nuku'alofa
Capital - geographic coordinate	21 08 S, 175 12 W
Capital Time Difference	UTC+13 (18 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Daylight Savings Time	+1hr, begins first Sunday in November; ends second Sunday in January
Independence	4 June 1970 (from UK protectorate status)
National Holiday	Official Birthday of King TUPOU VI, 4 July (1959); note - actual birthday of the monarch is 12 July 1959, 4 July (2015) is the day the king was crowned; Constitution Day (National Day), 4 November (1875)
Constitution	history: adopted 4 November 1875, revised 1988, 2016 amendments: proposed by the Legislative Assembly; passage requires approval by the Assembly in each of three readings, the unanimous approval of the Privy Council (a high-level advisory body to the monarch), the Cabinet, and assent to by the monarch; revised 1988; amended many times, last in 2013

Tonga Capital City Map

Source: Google Maps

Tonga Government and Politics

Who is the president of Tonga?

Executive Branch:	chief of state: King TUPOU VI (since 18 March 2012); Heir Apparent Crown Prince Siaosi Manumataogo 'Alaivahamama'o 'Ahoeitu Konstantin Tuku'aho, son of the king (born 17 September 1985) head of government: Prime Minister Siaosi SOVALENI (since 27 December 2021) cabinet: Cabinet nominated by the prime minister and appointed by the monarch elections/appointments: the monarchy is hereditary; prime minister and deputy prime minister indirectly elected by the Legislative Assembly and appointed by the monarch; election last held on 18 November 2021 (next to be held in November 2025) election results: Siaosi SOVALENI elected prime minister by the Legislative Assembly; Siaosi SOVALENI 16 votes, Aisake EKE 10 note: a Privy Council advises the monarch
Citizenship Criteria:	citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: the father must be a citizen of Tonga; if a child is born out of wedlock, the mother must be a citizen of Tonga dual citizenship recognized: yes residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years
Legal System:	English common law
Suffrage:	21 years of age; universal
Legislative Branch:	description: unicameral Legislative Assembly or Fale Alea (30 seats statutory, 28 current); 17 people's representatives directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote, and 9 indirectly elected by hereditary leaders; members serve 4-year terms) elections: last held on 18 November 2021 (next to be held in November 2025) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats by party - independent 11, nobles' representatives 9, DPFI 3, TPPI 3; composition as of February 2024 - men 26, women 2, percentage women 7.1%
Judicial Branch:	highest court(s): Court of Appeal (consists of the court president and a number of judges determined by the monarch); note - appeals beyond the Court of Appeal are brought before the King in Privy Council, the monarch's advisory organ that has both judicial and legislative powers judge selection and term of office: judge appointments and tenures made by the King in Privy Council and subject to consent of the Legislative Assembly subordinate courts: Supreme Court; Magistrates' Courts; Land Courts
Regions or States:	5 island divisions; 'Eua, Ha'apai, Ongo Niua, Tongatapu, Vava'u
Political Parties and Leaders:	Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands or DPFI or PTOA [Semisi SIKA] People's Democratic Party or PDP [Tesina FUKO] Tonga Democratic Labor Party (vacant) Tonga Human Rights and Democracy Movement or HRDM ['Uliti UATA] Tonga People's Party or PAK or TPPI (Paati ʻa e Kakai ʻo Tonga) [Pohiva TU'I'ONETOA] (split from Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands)
International Law Organization Participation:	has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt
International Organization Participation:	ACP, ADB, AOSIS, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic Representation in the US:	chief of mission: Ambassador Viliana Va’inga TONE (since 20 April 2021) chancery: 250 East 51st Street, New York, NY 10022 telephone: [1] (917) 369-1025 FAX: [1] (917) 369-1024 email address and website: tongaunmission@aol.com consulate(s) general: San Francisco
Diplomatic Representation from US:	chief of mission: Ambassador Marie DAMOUR (since 6 December 2022); note - Ambassador DAMOUR is based in the US Embassy in the Republic of Fiji and is accredited to Tonga as well as Kiribati, Nauru, and Tuvalu embassy: although the US opened an embassy in Tonga on 9 May 2023, the US Ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tonga while the Embassy is being staffed

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