Samoa to hold snap elections amidst fallout between Fiame and FAST party

Australia Broadcast Center

28-05-2025

Samoans are heading for an early election, after Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mata'afa called for the dissolution of parliament. The call came after the her government's budget was voted down by a combination of opposition and FAST party MPs.
It's another twist in a long running saga that has seen Fiame survive two votes of no confidence earlier in the year. Many however are not surprised that the budget failed to pass through.
"Given the way the parliament has operated over the past year, this is not surprising at all," said Samoan human rights scholar and journalist Lagipoiva Cherelle Jackson.
"We've never been in a stage before where we have three parties to this degree where it does impact the decisions of parliament."