Do we like Fiamē Naomi Mataʻafa?
Our score: 7 out of 10. A decent, principled pioneer who lost power in a messy party split, with a thin record on LGBTQ+ issues and a mixed delivery on promises.
Fiamē comes from Samoan political royalty. Her father was the first prime minister after independence in 1962, her mother was also a lawmaker and diplomat, and she won her parents' old Lotofaga seat in 1985. In 1991 she became Samoa's first female cabinet minister, and in 2016 its first female deputy prime minister.
The defining stoush came in 2020, when she resigned as deputy PM over laws that control the judiciary, warning the government was “sliding away from the rule of law”. She then led the FAST party to a tight 2021 election and became Samoa's first woman prime minister after a long constitutional standoff with Tuilaʻepa, whose party had ruled since 1982. Walking out on the top job to defend a principle is the sort of cost most politicians never pay.
Her government ran as a minority and was never stable. In January 2025 FAST turned on her, and she survived two no-confidence motions. In May parliament rejected her budget 34 votes to 16, which forced an early election. Analysts also note that many of her 2021 campaign promises remained unfulfilled.
During one no-confidence debate, a male MP told her “Your leadership would have been remarkable if you had gotten married.” She reportedly did not respond to the personal attack, and said her government had the confidence of the house. That is a fair snapshot of the sexism she has faced as a woman leading in Samoa.
On the harm check, nothing nasty turned up in her own words or acts. She is known as a leading voice on gender equality and has made climate change her central theme, telling the UN in 2021 it was the biggest challenge facing the world. The gap is that we found no statement from her on LGBTQ+ rights, so we can't say where she stands, and that is why this is not a full-marks pass.
The recent saga is murkier. In March 2025 letters to authorities alleged she had a part in removing evidence linked to a death that is the subject of a murder trial. She publicly denied it, and police reportedly found no concrete evidence against her. The woman behind the letters has since pleaded guilty to misleading police and an amended charge of attempting to pervert the course of justice, and is yet to be sentenced.