Tonga’s parliament elects a new prime minister after his predecessor quit this month

Associated Press

PERTH, Australia (AP) — Tonga’s parliament has elected Aisake Eke as the country’s new prime minister. The vote came in a special session of the house on Christmas Eve. Eke’s predecessor quit earlier this month just ahead of a no-confidence vote by lawmakers. Eke — who assumes office less than a year before the South Pacific island nation of 105,000 people is to hold its next election — won the secret ballot by 16-8 votes on Tuesday. The tourism-dependent Tonga has struggled to rebound from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, growing threats from climate change and a catastrophic 2022 volcanic eruption and tsunami, which battered beachfront resorts, homes and businesses around the country’s 171 islands.