From Ambassador (Samoa's first general election in four years)
2025/7/24
Campaign Signboards in the City
Campaign Signboards in the City
Campaign Signboards in the City
Samoa is now preparing for its parliamentary election. The last election was in 2021. The voting date is set to be August 29th.
The candidates have been registered, election campaigning has begun, and posters with photos of candidates can be seen all over town.
There are some differences between Samoa's elections and Japan's.
The parliament is unicameral. There are 51 electoral districts. It is a so-called single-seat constituency system in which one representative is elected from each constituency. What is interesting is that the size of population of each constituency is not necessarily equal. This is probably based on the idea that each representative represents a particular "district." In that sense, it is similar to US Senate elections than to Japanese House of Representatives elections. It looks as though the connection between each representative and their constituency is much stronger than in Japan.
Voting rights are available to anyone who is 21 or older and who has Samoan nationality. In the past, only those who were registered "matai" were allowed to vote, but now ordinary citizens can.
To be eligible to run for an election, he/she must have the right to vote and is a registered matai. There are many aspects of this "Matai" system that are difficult for outsiders to understand, but it is a unique system in Samoa in that only leaders of local communities and family societies are eligible to become members of parliament.
To vote, you must register as a voter in advance. Failure to register as a voter will result in a fine. And once you have registered as a voter, you must vote in principle. If you do not vote without a reason, you will also be fined! This is quite different from some countries where the voter turnout is below 50%.
This election saw 191 candidates and seven political parties competing. Japan also held its House of Councilors election only recently. Now what will happen in Samoa?
The candidates have been registered, election campaigning has begun, and posters with photos of candidates can be seen all over town.
There are some differences between Samoa's elections and Japan's.
The parliament is unicameral. There are 51 electoral districts. It is a so-called single-seat constituency system in which one representative is elected from each constituency. What is interesting is that the size of population of each constituency is not necessarily equal. This is probably based on the idea that each representative represents a particular "district." In that sense, it is similar to US Senate elections than to Japanese House of Representatives elections. It looks as though the connection between each representative and their constituency is much stronger than in Japan.
Voting rights are available to anyone who is 21 or older and who has Samoan nationality. In the past, only those who were registered "matai" were allowed to vote, but now ordinary citizens can.
To be eligible to run for an election, he/she must have the right to vote and is a registered matai. There are many aspects of this "Matai" system that are difficult for outsiders to understand, but it is a unique system in Samoa in that only leaders of local communities and family societies are eligible to become members of parliament.
To vote, you must register as a voter in advance. Failure to register as a voter will result in a fine. And once you have registered as a voter, you must vote in principle. If you do not vote without a reason, you will also be fined! This is quite different from some countries where the voter turnout is below 50%.
This election saw 191 candidates and seven political parties competing. Japan also held its House of Councilors election only recently. Now what will happen in Samoa?