Samoa’s long-running political turbulence intensified after the August election ousted the country’s first woman prime minister and left her former party in control under a new leader who faces criminal charges and internal dissent.
The Faʻatuatua i le Atua Samoa ua Tasi party, known as FAST, won 30 seats in the 51-seat Parliament, the Human Rights Protection Party captured 14 and independents took four. Fiamē Naomi Mata’afa, who became prime minister in 2021 and campaigned this year as leader of the new Samoa Uniting Party after being expelled from FAST, won only three seats. Samoa’s ceremonial Head of State, Tuimalealiifano Va’aletoa Sualauvi II, said Parliament will sit on Sept. 16 to confirm a new prime minister.
La’aulialemalietoa Leuatea Polataivao Schmidt, the FAST chairman who led the party into the vote after Fiamē’s expulsion, is expected to be confirmed as prime minister when lawmakers convene. La’aulialemalietoa was removed as a cabinet minister in January by Fiamē after he was charged with harassment using electronic means, defamation and attempting to pervert the course of justice; he denies the allegations. He faces a pending judgment on those charges.
The change follows months of bitter infighting that began when Fiamē sacked La’aulialemalietoa, who then expelled her from FAST. Her minority government continued until May, when it failed to pass a budget and she sought an early election that put her directly against her former party. The election outcome dashed her hopes of remaining in office and marked an abrupt turn in Samoan politics.
Both of FAST’s rivals have said they will file legal challenges to the election results, alleging improprieties including cash-for-votes, the Samoa Observer reported. Pacific journalist Renate Rivers, who covered the vote, said the scale of alleged vote-buying was "very alarming." Legal challenges are not uncommon in Samoa, and commentators said the suits are unlikely to change the overall result.
The campaign was dominated by concerns over the rising cost of living. FAST campaigned on promises to increase community development budgets, devolving more spending decisions to local levels, and to cut taxes. Critics of La’aulialemalietoa said he had not explained how the party would fund its spending pledges.
The outcome also trims Samoa’s international posture. Observers noted Fiamē was more cautious than her predecessor about accepting large loans from China for development projects; Samoa’s debt to China is among the highest in the world when measured as a share of gross domestic product. Analysts cautioned that an incoming government focused on domestic priorities might alter the country’s approach in the geopolitically contested South Pacific.
Tuila’epa Sa’ilele Malielegaoi, leader of the HRPP and prime minister for 22 years before Fiamē took office in 2021, was the third contender in the election. His party’s 14 seats make it the main opposition bloc.
The election also raised questions about compliance with Samoa’s legal requirement that at least 10% of Parliament be women. Initial results showed five women elected, one short of the quota, and electoral authorities could add an extra seat to meet the requirement.
Fiamē now faces choices about her political future. Her three lawmakers do not meet the threshold to sit as a separate parliamentary bloc. They could join one of the larger groups, sit as independents, or pursue other options within Samoa’s parliamentary process.
The Sept. 16 parliamentary sitting is set to determine whether La’aulialemalietoa will be sworn in as prime minister and how legal challenges and the pending criminal case against him will intersect with Samoa’s next political chapter.