Sunday, November 16, 2008

Election Day

Election Day in the territory was exciting from an national and local standpoint. Governor, Fono seats [local legislature], and American Samoa's non-voting member of the U.S. House of Representatives were all up for grabs in a hotly contested election season.

Local campaigner:
You can't buy votes, but you can buy lunch. Candidates provide their supporters with free plate lunches:
Supporters:
One of my favorite candidates was Fagatogo Steve. He seemed disappointed when we informed him we weren't local voters, but was gracious enough to offer us free lunch regardless. Sadly, he was defeated by just a few votes:
A number of island Palagis [a/k/a white people] eagerly awaited the Presidential returns at the Pago Pago Yacht Club:
Sale of alcohol is prohibited on election day. Probably a good idea [see free lunch picture earlier]:

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Classic times, I watched the '04 election on that same TV at the yacht club, probably in that same chair, but with MUCH less joyess results...