France’s top state representative in New Caledonia has ordered a temporary ban on takeout alcohol sales during the week of the territory’s 2026 provincial elections, a preventive move aimed at avoiding public-order disturbances.
The measure, announced by the High Commission of the Republic in New Caledonia, is set to be lifted once voting is over. The Pacific archipelago—an overseas territory of France—has remained under heightened scrutiny since the 2024 riots and has not regained lasting stability, authorities say.
The restriction applies only to alcohol sold for off-premises consumption. Drinking in bars and restaurants remains allowed.
A familiar emergency tool in New Caledonia
Limits on alcohol sales around sensitive events are not new in New Caledonia. In September 2025, ahead of Kanak ceremonies commemorating the deaths of two young people killed during a gendarmerie operation in Saint-Louis, the High Commission banned takeout alcohol sales from September 18 to September 28 while thousands of gendarmes were deployed across the territory.
Earlier, in December 2024, when authorities lifted a curfew that had been in place since May 14, takeout alcohol sales were partially restored but capped at four liters of beer or cider (about 1.1 gallons), two liters of wine (about 0.5 gallons), and one liter of hard liquor (about 0.3 gallons).
Officials have leaned on such restrictions since the May 2024 riots, which erupted after a contested electoral reform was approved—an issue opposed by pro-independence groups. Local authorities said the violence left 13 people dead, including two gendarmes, injured hundreds, led to thousands of arrests, and caused at least €2.2 billion (about $2.4 billion) in property damage.
June 28 vote set against a tense political backdrop
New Caledonia’s provincial elections are scheduled for June 28, 2026, with the makeup of the electorate still a major point of friction. After a proposed constitutional bill failed in France’s National Assembly in early April, Parliament took up an emergency debate on a new text aimed at expanding the electorate for the archipelago.
On the ground, campaigns are in full swing. On June 20, the pro-independence slate “Unis pour le pays,” led by Louis Mapou, held meetings in Bourail focused on the cost of living and the role of customary authorities in provincial governance.
Mapou argued that the province should work with customary councils and municipalities to develop projections for “the next ten to twenty years.” The slate plans to travel to five other municipalities in the South Province in the week before the vote.
