The results are in for the Oct. 4 independence referendum [6] in New Caledonia and, as in 2018 [7], the majority has voted against [8] seceding from France. However, the proportion of "yes" to "no" votes changed. Support for independence rose from 43% in 2018 to 47% this time, indicating that more residents than ever before want an independent country for their island home. Voter turnout was also even higher than last time, rising from 81% to 85%. And the archipelago could still become independent in the coming years. The 1998 Nouméa Accord [9] [translation [13]] that paved the way for this referendum also allows for one more independence vote, in 2022, for a total of three. One-third of the region's legislature must vote in favor of holding the final referendum—and that body already has a pro-independence majority.
On the other hand, anti-independence politicians have called for a change of script now that secession has failed twice. One argument says the final referendum should instead give residents the option of going the other direction: further integration with France [10]. But that could be very controversial, with many calling it a violation of the Nouméa Accord.
Condensed from Political Geography Now [14], Oct. 4
Note: New Caledonia was given a unique semi-autonomous status as a special form of French "oveseas territory" by the Nouméa Accord. Before that it had been an "overseas collectivity" (COM), along with French Polynesia [15], with a lesser degree of autonomy. The "oveseas territories" with the least degree of autonomy are the "overseas departments and regions" (DROM), such as French Guiana [16], Guadeloupe [17] and Réunion [18]. The "oveseas territories" (TOM) were formed out of the former "colonial empire" with the 1947 Constitution of the Fourth Republic. All the "oveseas territories" are technically considered part of France.