SUVA, April 16 (Xinhua) -- The official results of Samoa's general election showed on Friday night that the ruling Human Rights Protection Party (HRPP) led by incumbent Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi and Faatuatua i le Atua Samoa ua Tasi (FAST) led by former HRPP deputy Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mataafa are tied on 25 seats each in the Samoan parliament.
According to Samoa's English daily newspaper the Samoa Observer, after the end of the final counting of this year's general election on Friday, Samoa's Electoral Commissioner presented the results to island nation's Head of State Tuimaleali'ifano Va'aletoa Sualauvi II, who then endorsed the official results where HRPP and FAST secured 25 seats each.
On April 9 this year, a total of 189 Samoan candidates, include 21 women, contested the 50 seats for a five-year term in the legislative assembly.
Samoa is a Pacific island nation with a population of more than 190,000. The last general election was held in Samoa in 2016 with the HRPP winning a landslide victory. Enditem