Cynthia Ligeard (Joan of What?)

Cynthia Ligeard (née Parage, born 15 June 1962) is a politician serving as a  from  since 2017. She also briefly served as from 2014 to 2015, and had been a member of the  from 2004 to 2016. While serving as a member of the state parliament, she was also President of the Southern Province Assembly from 2012 to 2014. She is the first woman to serve as Premier of New Caledonia and as President of any New Caledonian provincial assembly.

Born and raised in while New Caledonia was still an  of Cygnia, Ligeard attended university in, graduating with a Master's of Applied Linguistics from the. After returning to New Caledonia, she worked for the City of Noumea as an organiser of cultural events and festivals.

Ligeard began her political career in 2002 when she was hired as Chief of Staff to the Lord Mayor of Noumea,, who facilitated her entry into the higher levels of New Caledonia's political landscape. She was elected to the Assembly of the Southern Province in 2004, and in virtue of her new position as Councillor also gained a seat in the, whose membership is drawn from those of the provincial assemblies. As a Councillor, Ligeard chaired the provincial Committee on Housing and Urban Development from 2009 until 2011, when she was elected to the Vice Presidency of the Assembly.

In 2012, Ligeard was elected President of the Southern Provincial Assembly following the resignation of her predecessor,, and served in this capacity until 2014, when she was chosen to serve as a caretaker Premier of New Caledonia after the resignation of. She was replaced by in 2015, and in 2016, she left state politics to contest one of the two  seats up for  that year. She won the election, and was seated on 3 January 2017.