He is elected by Parliament of Fiji after nomination by the Prime Minister or the Leader of the Opposition, for a three-year term.
Although his role is largely an honorary one, modelled after that of the British Monarchy, the President has certain "reserve powers" that may be used in the event of a national crisis.
In 2000, in the midst of a civilian coup d'État against the elected government, President Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara announced on 27 May that he was assuming executive authority, but was evidently forced to resign two days later by the military Commander, Commodore Frank Bainimarama.
Under the former constitution, which was abrogated at the behest of the Military-backed interim government in 2009, the Prime Minister was formally appointed by the President, but had to be acceptable to a majority of the House of Representatives.
In practice, this usually reduced the President's role to little more than a formality, with the position automatically going to the leader of the political party or coalition that controlled a majority of seats.
After consulting with all the parliamentary factions, he would appoint as Prime Minister the person he judged to be the most acceptable to the majority in the House of Representatives.
From 2001 to 2004, Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase, whose coalition dominated by his Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua had narrowly won the 2001 election, refused to include the Fiji Labour Party in his cabinet, and avoided implementing several subsequent Supreme Court verdicts ordering him to do so by appealing each successive verdict, until the Labour Party announced late in 2004 that it was no longer interested in joining the cabinet.
[2] In October 2021, Tui Macuata Ratu Wiliame Katonivere was elected the new President of Fiji by the parliament.
Its 50 members are elected for four-year terms by Party-list proportional representation, with the entire country voting as a single constituency.
When votes for small parties polling less than the five-percent threshold were excluded, this entitled FijiFirst to 32 of the 50 seats.
The "upper chamber", the Senate, was primarily a house of review: it could not initiate legislation, but could amend or reject it.
Following the 2000 coup, however, its integrity was compromised, in the eye of many, when three judges (including Daniel Fatiaki, who later became Chief Justice) advised then-President Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara to abrogate the constitution.
Then Chief Justice recognised the military government, triggering widespread disappointment to those who had seen the judiciary as a model of independence.
The 55‑member Great Council of Chiefs (Bose Levu Vakaturaga in Fijian) included 3 representatives from each of Fiji's 14 provinces and 1 dependency, 3 ex-officio members (the President, Vice-President, and Prime Minister), and 6 government appointees; former Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka was a life-member.
The Great Council of Chiefs advised the government, and also functioned as an electoral college to appoint the President of the Republic, as well as 14 of the 32 Senators.
In 1909 near the peak of the inflow of indentured Indian labourers, the land ownership pattern was frozen and further sales prohibited.
Indo-Fijians produce over 90% of the sugar crop but must lease the land they work from its ethnic Fijian owners instead of being able to buy it outright.
The farmers' main tool of influence has been their ability to galvanise widespread boycotts of the sugar industry, thereby crippling the economy.