The Democratic Party (also known for a time as the Democratic Alliance Party) is a political party in the Cook Islands. As a result of the 2022 Cook Islands election, it is currently in opposition, holding five seats in the Cook Islands Parliament. Early years The Democratic Party was founded by Tom Davis in 1971, in opposition to the Cook Islands Party (CIP) of Albert Henry. In the 1972 election, it won eight seats, breaking the two-thirds majority of the CIP. In 1978, it won power, with Davis becoming Prime Minister. It became one of the two primary parties of the Cook Islands, alternating in power with the CIP. Davis served as prime minister of the Cook Islands from 1978 to 1987, with a brief interruption in 1983 when the Cook Islands briefly returned to power. The Democratic Party remained in power until 1989. In the late 1990s, the party experienced a split, with the majority of the party renamed as the Democratic Alliance Party. A breakaway faction led by Norman George was named the New Alliance Party. Despite this, the Democratic Party became the largest political party in the 1999 elections, winning 11 of 25 seats. The New Alliance Party, with 4 seats, made a coalition with the Cook Islands party to keep that party in power for several more months, but the coalition soon broke down, and the New Alliance Party formed a coalition party with the Democrats, allowing Democratic party leader Terepai Maoate to become prime minister. The Democratic Alliance Party and the New Alliance Party later reunited under the old Democratic Party name. In 2002 Maoate was overthrown in a no confidence vote and replaced by his deputy Robert Woonton, also a member of the DAP. It formed a coalition with the Cook Islands Party which broke down in 2003. 2004 and 2006 elections At the next elections, 7 September 2004, the Democratic Alliance won 47.2% of popular votes and 12 out of 24 seats. Prime Minister Robert Woonton, though initially believed to have retained his seat, which would have allowed the Democratic Party to have a majority, was determined in a recount to have received an equal number of votes as his opponent, and he lost a revote. The new party leader, Jim Marurai, became Prime Minister. In 2005, however, Marurai left the party due to internal disputes, founding his own Cook Islands First Party.