About 30 candidates, including ten women, signed up for next month's historic elections in Tonga within the first hour of registration this morning.
The election next month will see Tongans vote for the majority of their MPs for the first time.
Radio Tonga reports that prospective candidates had begun queuing outside the Electoral Commission in Nuku'alofa before it opened at 9.
The registration process continues until the end of tomorrow afternoon and the elections supervisor, Pita Vuki, is anticipating about 170 candidates will contest the 17 seats.
One prominent candidate who's just formally announced he will run is the caretaker deputy prime minister and minister of health, Dr. Viliami Tangi.
