FAST to retain power after Samoan election victory confirmed

"The incumbent Fa'atuatua i le Atua Samoa ua Tasi (FAST) party has been confirmed as the winner of the national election in Samoa. Official results released by the Samoan electoral commission on Friday showed that FAST won 30 out of the 50 seats contested. However, Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mata'afa departed the party earlier this year and will be succeeded by new FAST leader Laaulialemalietoa Leuatea Schmidt."

"The Samoa Uniting Party, formed earlier this year by Fiame known as the Iron Lady of the Pacific won only three seats, including her own. She was expelled from FAST in January amid a factional dispute. Rising prices had been cited as a key issue for voters in the country of about 220,000 people. Before the election on August 29, in Apia, the Samoan capital, residents had told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation they were looking forward to political stability."

FAST secured 30 of the 50 contested parliamentary seats, confirming its victory in the national election. The main opposition Human Rights Protection Party won 14 seats, while independents captured four. The Samoa Uniting Party, set up by former prime minister Fiame Naomi Mata'afa after her expulsion from FAST, won three seats including her own. Rising prices were a prominent voter concern. Samoa's head of state issued a warrant confirming the new lawmakers. Five women won seats, and a 10 percent minimum representation rule will require at least six women, creating an additional parliamentary seat.

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