| Country name: |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Tokelau |
| Government type: |
NA |
| Capital: |
none; each atoll has its own administrative center
time difference: UTC-11 (6 hours behind Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Administrative divisions: |
none (territory of New Zealand) |
| Independence: |
none (territory of New Zealand) |
| National holiday: |
Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840) |
| Constitution: |
administered under the Tokelau Islands Act of 1948; amended in 1970 |
| Legal system: |
New Zealand and local statutes |
| Suffrage: |
21 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch: |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General of New Zealand Anand SATYANAND (since 23 August 2006); New Zealand is represented by Administrator David PAYTON (since 17 October 2006)
head of government: Kolouei O'BRIEN (2006); note - position rotates annually among the three Faipule (village leaders)
cabinet: the Council for the Ongoing Government of Tokelau, consisting of three Faipule (village leaders) and three Pulenuku (village mayors), functions as a cabinet
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade in New Zealand; the head of government is chosen from the Council of Faipule and serves a one-year term |
| Legislative branch: |
unicameral General Fono (21 seats; based upon proportional representation from the three islands elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms; Nukunonu has six seats, Fakaofo has seven seats, Atafu has eight seats); note - the Tokelau Amendment Act of 1996 confers limited legislative power on the General Fono
elections: last held January 2005 (next to be held January 2008) |
| Judicial branch: |
Supreme Court in New Zealand exercises civil and criminal jurisdiction in Tokelau |
| Political parties and leaders: |
none |
| Political pressure groups and leaders: |
none |
| International organization participation: |
PIF (observer), SPC, UNESCO (associate), UPU |
| Diplomatic representation in the US: |
none (territory of New Zealand) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US: |
none (territory of New Zealand) |
| Flag description: |
the flag of New Zealand is used |
