The American Samoa Senate is the

upper house An upper house is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house.''Bicameralism'' (1997) by George Tsebelis The house formally designated as the upper house is usually smaller and often has more restric ...

of the

American Samoa Fono The American Samoa Fono is the territorial legislature of American Samoa. Like most states and territorial legislatures of the United States, it is a bicameral legislature with a House of Representatives and a Senate. The legislature is lo ...

. The Senate, like the

lower Lower may refer to: *Lower (surname) *Lower Township, New Jersey *Lower Receiver (firearms) *Lower Wick Gloucestershire, England See also *Nizhny Nizhny (russian: Ни́жний; masculine), Nizhnyaya (; feminine), or Nizhneye (russian: Ни́� ...

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

, is a nonpartisan body. It is composed of 18 senators, serving a four-year term.

History

American Samoa American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the Internationa ...

became a

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

territory in 1900 and was initially administered by the

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...

. From 1905, annual meetings were held with delegates sent from the local communities, as an advisory council to the naval governor.Historical Sketch of the Naval Administration of the Government of American Samoa
Capt. T. F. Darden, 1952.
AmSamoa.net. In 1948, a bicameral legislature was established, still in advisory capacity. The upper house, named the House of Ali‘i, was composed of 12 members, being the seven high chiefs of

Tutuila Tutuila is the main island of American Samoa (and its largest), and is part of the archipelago of Samoan Islands. It is the third largest island in the Samoan Islands chain of the Central Pacific. It is located roughly northeast of Brisbane, A ...

and the five high chiefs of Manu‘a.The Statesman's Year-Book: Statistical and Historical Annual of the States of the World for the Year 1953
S. H. Steinberg.Elite Communication in Samoa: A Study of Leadership
Felix M. Keesing and Marie M. Keesing, 1956. This legislature was reformed in 1952, after administration of American Samoa had been transferred to the Department of the Interior. Members of the House of Ali‘i became advisors to the governor, while a new upper house, named the Senate, was established. There were 15 senators, five from each of the three districts of American Samoa (

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

Eastern Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai *Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 *Eastern Air Li ...

and Manu‘a). Senators were elected in open meetings, according to Samoan custom, and had to be holders of a matai title.The Statesman's Year-Book: Statistical and Historical Annual of the States of the World for the Year 1954
S. H. Steinberg. In 1960, the first constitution of American Samoa was adopted. The Senate became composed of 15 members: one from each of the then 14 counties, elected for four-year terms, and an additional senator rotating from the then four counties of the Western District, elected for two-year terms. In 1967, the revised constitution modified the Senate to 18 members, all elected for four-year terms: two from the combined counties of Ta‘ū island; one from the combined counties of

Ofu-Olosega Ofu and Olosega are parts of a volcanic doublet in the Manuʻa Islands, which is a part of American Samoa in the Samoan Islands. These twin islands, formed from shield volcanoes, have a combined length of 6 km and a combined area of . Together ...

; three from Ma‘oputasi county; two each from Sua, Itu‘au and Tualauta counties; and one from each of the six remaining counties. Under both constitutions, senators are elected according to Samoan custom by the county councils and must be holders of a matai title. Fano Solinuu Shimasaki was the first woman to serve in the American Samoa Senate.

List of senators

As of 2021, the members of the American Samoa Senate are:

Voting

The American Samoa Senate is the only legislature of its kind in the entire

, both

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

and territorial, that is not directly elected by the voting population. Instead, the Senate's voting franchise is strictly limited to the various chiefs of the islands.

Past composition of the Senate

References

{{coord, -14.2782, -170.6890, type:landmark_region:US-AS, display=title Senate Territorial upper houses in the United States