One of New Caledonia's main parties has elected a new party president to replace Charles Pidjot who died in Vanuatu last September.
The congress of the pro-independence Caledonian Union chose 59-year-old Daniel Goa as its new head, giving him 114 votes against the 80 cast for Pierre Chanel Tutugoro.
The outcome is seen as an endorsement of the party's recent policy of realignment with part of the anti-independence side.
The party has been in a loose coalition with the Rassemblement-UMP, the Future Together Party and the Labour Party.
It has been the dominant alliance in the collegial government
