Togiola Talalelei A. Tulafono (born February 28, 1947) is an American Samoan politician and lawyer who served as the 6th

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

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 ...

. He is a member of the Democratic Party. He had previously served as lieutenant governor, taking this position on January 3, 1997. Tulafono was lieutenant governor when, on March 26, 2003, Governor Tauese Pita Fiti Sunia died. He then became

acting governor An acting governor is a person who acts in the role of governor. In Commonwealth jurisdictions where the governor is a vice-regal position, the role of "acting governor" may be filled by a lieutenant governor (as in most Australian states) or an ...

and officially became governor on April 7, 2003. He was elected to a full 4-year term in the November 2004 gubernatorial elections and was re-elected in the November 2008 gubernatorial election. Tulafono did not run for governor in 2012 as he was term-limited and could not seek a third consecutive term. He was an unsuccessful candidate for

American Samoa's at-large congressional district American Samoa's at-large congressional district encompasses the entire U.S. territorial region of American Samoa. The territory does not have a voting member of Congress but does elect a delegate who can participate in debates and vote in commi ...

in 2014.

Biography

Early life

Togiola T. A. Tulafono was born on February 28, 1947, in Aunu'u Island,

. Tulafono was educated in Samoa, attending elementary school in Autu'u and

Samoana High School Samoana High School (SHS) is a prominent high school in Utulei,History
" Samoana High School at Cyb ...

. He attended

Chadron State College Chadron State College is a public college in Chadron, Nebraska, US. It is one of three public colleges in the Nebraska State College System. It has open admission and an acceptance rate of 100%. According to College Factual, it has a six-year g ...

in the

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 ...

, where he earned bachelor's degrees in both

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

and

sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of empirical investigation an ...

in 1970. He received a

doctor of laws A Doctor of Law is a degree in law. The application of the term varies from country to country and includes degrees such as the Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D. or S.J.D), Juris Doctor (J.D.), Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), and Legum Doctor ...

degree from the Washburn University School of Law in

Topeka, Kansas Topeka ( ; Kansa: ; iow, Dópikˀe, script=Latn or ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the seat of Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, in northeast Kansas, in the Central U ...

, in 1975. Tulafono has served as a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...

of the

Congregational Christian Church The Congregational Christian Churches were a Protestant Christian denomination that operated in the U.S. from 1931 through 1957. On the latter date, most of its churches joined the Evangelical and Reformed Church in a merger to become the United ...

in Sa'ilele, American Samoa, for over 25 years.

Career

After college, Tulafono worked as a legal assistant at American Samoa's Attorney General's Office and as an administrative assistant for the Secretary of Samoan Affairs. He spent two years each working as a private practice attorney and as a vice president for

South Pacific Island Airways South Pacific Island Airways (SPIA) was an airline operating flights in the Pacific including American Samoa and Hawaii with service to the west coast of U.S. and Canada as well as to Alaska, New Zealand, Guam and Tahiti from 1973 to 1987. The Fe ...

during the late 1970s.government job contract federal state at asg-gov.net
Tulafono was appointed as a district court judge in 1978 and then to the

American Samoa Senate The American Samoa Senate is the upper house of the American Samoa Fono. The Senate, like the lower House of Representatives, is a nonpartisan body. It is composed of 18 senators, serving a four-year term. History American Samoa became a Unit ...

in 1980. After serving one term in the upper house for Sa'Ole County, he reentered law practice, but then ran again successfully for a Senate seat in 1989. However, he was later elected to the

for Sua County for eight years. He also chaired the board of directors for the American Samoa Power Authority and was the first chairman of the Board of Higher Education. Tulafono further co-chaired the South Pacific Mini Games committee in 1997 when American Samoa hosted the games. He later co-chaired the American Samoa Centennial Committee in 2000, which was formed to commemorate the 100th anniversary of American Samoa becoming a territorial possession of the United States. Tulafono presently serves as vice chairman of the territorial church general assembly of American Samoa as of 2008. After his term as governor ended, Tulafono ran for U.S. Delegate for

for the 2014 elections, but he lost at third place with 11% of the vote.

Governor of American Samoa

Tulafono was sworn in as the Lieutenant Governor of American Samoa under Governor Tauese Sunia on January 3, 1997. Sunia and Tulafono were re-elected in 2000 and sworn into their second terms in office on January 3, 2001. Tulafono remained lieutenant governor until Sunia's sudden death from a heart attack on March 26, 2003. Tulafono became

until he was formally sworn into office as Governor of American Samoa on April 7, 2003. In the first round of

election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has opera ...

s on November 2, 2004, Tulafono received 48.4% of the vote. In the second round on November 16, Tulafono defeated

Afoa Moega Lutu Afoafouvale Leulumoegafou Suesue Lutu (born February 24, 1947) is an American Samoan politician and attorney. Lutu has served as the former attorney general of American Samoa in two different administrations. He is also a former senator from the d ...

, who had run against him for the position of lieutenant governor in 2000, by a vote of 56%-44%. As governor, Tulafano is a member of the

National Governors Association The National Governors Association (NGA) is an American political organization founded in 1908. The association's members are the governors of the 55 states, territories and commonwealths. Members come to the association from across the politica ...

and the

Democratic Governors Association The Democratic Governors Association (DGA) is a Washington, D.C.-based 527 organization founded in 1983, consisting of U.S. state and territorial governors affiliated with the Democratic Party. The mission of the organization is to provide part ...

. Tulafono took part in endorsing Senator

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...

for

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...

during the 2008 presidential primaries and the

American Samoa Democratic caucuses, 2008 The 2008 American Samoa Democratic presidential caucuses took place on February 5, 2008, also known as Super Tuesday. Caucusing began at 11:00 am local time. The early time ensured that results would be reported that evening in the mainland Un ...

and became the national co-chair of Asian Americans and

Pacific Islanders Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/ racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of Oce ...

for Hillary. It was under Tulafono's leadership that American Samoa became, in November 2011, a founding member of the

Polynesian Leaders Group The Polynesian Leaders Group (PLG) is an international governmental cooperation group bringing together eight independent or self-governing countries or territories in Polynesia. The idea of a Polynesian regional grouping had been discussed for ...

, a regional grouping intended to cooperate on a variety of issues including culture and language, education, responses to climate change, and trade and investment.

The dispute with Hawaiian Airlines

In July 2006, Governor Tulafono issued a mandate to

Hawaiian Airlines Hawaiian Airlines ( haw, Hui Mokulele o Hawaiʻi ) is the largest operator of commercial flights to and from the U.S. state of Hawaii. It is the tenth-largest commercial airline in the United States, and is based at Honolulu, Hawaii. The airl ...

, giving the airline ninety days to cease service to

Pago Pago International Airport Pago Pago International Airport , also known as Tafuna Airport, is a public airport located 7 miles (11.3 km) southwest of the central business district of Pago Pago, in the village and plains of Tafuna on the island of Tutuila in American ...

Pago Pago Pago Pago ( ; Samoan: )Harris, Ann G. and Esther Tuttle (2004). ''Geology of National Parks''. Kendall Hunt. Page 604. . is the territorial capital of American Samoa. It is in Maoputasi County on Tutuila, which is American Samoa's main island. ...

. The carrier, which offers the only service to American Samoa (beside commuter flights to

Apia Apia () is the capital and largest city of Samoa, as well as the nation's only city. It is located on the central north coast of Upolu, Samoa's second-largest island. Apia falls within the political district (''itūmālō'') of Tuamasaga. ...

, in the country of

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands ( Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands ( Manono and Apolima); ...

), from its hub in

Honolulu Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island ...

, was accused of predatory pricing practices and ethnic harassment by the governor. In August 2006, the

FAA The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic m ...

stated in an official letter to the governor that the territory must continue to allow Hawaiian Airlines to fly the Honolulu-Pago Pago route or risk losing U.S. financial assistance.

2008 gubernatorial election

Governor Togiola Tulafono and Lieutenant Governor Ipulasi Aitofele Sunia announced their joint reelection campaign on May 10, 2008, at the Tradewinds Hotel in

Tafuna Tafuna ( sm, Tāfuna) is a village on the east coast of Tutuila Island, American Samoa. It is home to Pago Pago International Airport (Tafuna Airport). It is one mile south of Nu'uuli, American Samoa. The Ottoville district is a part of Tafuna. Ne ...

. The

2008 American Samoa gubernatorial election The 2008 American Samoa gubernatorial election took place on November 4, 2008, coinciding with the 2008 United States general elections and the American Samoa general election. Because no candidate received more than 50% of the vote, a runoff ...

took place on November 4, 2008. Governor Tulafono and Lieutenant Governor Sunia received 41.1% of the vote, challengers Utu Abe Malae and Nua Mailo Saoluaga received 31.4%, and Afoa Leulumoega Lutu and Velega Savali received 26.8 percent. Because no candidate exceeded 50% of the vote, a runoff election was held between the top two candidates, Tulafono and Utu Abe Malae on November 18, 2008, which Tulafono won.

Independence discussion

In 2012, both the Governor and American Samoa's delegate to the US Congress called for the populace to consider a move towards autonomy if not independence, to a mixed response.Call for independence discussion for American Samoa
Retrieved 2012-09-26.

References

External links

Samoa Observer: Inauguration celebration described as “makua seki lava!”Samoa Observer:Togiola admin theme: “Light tomorrow with today”Samoa Observer: All of American Samoa invited to inauguration festivities

Samoa News: Governor thanks public for vote of confidence and promises to be worthy of trust and support
* , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Tulafono, Togiola 1947 births American Samoa Democrats American Samoa Senators American people of Samoan descent American Samoan Congregationalists American Samoan lawyers Chadron State College alumni Democratic Party governors of American Samoa Governors of American Samoa Lieutenant Governors of American Samoa Living people Washburn University alumni