At a press conference this morning, Pulaalii Tuiteleleapaga Iuli Nikolao Pula announced that he is running for Governor in the November general elections.
He said, last year, he received a calling from the Lord to come and serve the territory.
Pulaalii said he will use his experience of over 20 years serving as Director of the Office of Territorial and Insular Affairs, Department of Interior to make things better for the people of American Samoa.
Asked why he is not announcing his running mate today, he said there are 8 months left before the elections and their camp is taking things slowly. He said the Hope2024 campaign is holding a kick-off at the Fagatogo Pavilion on March 30 at which his running mate will be announced.
Pula said since his return to the territory, he has heard people complaining about the distribution of government resources by the current leadership.
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Asked about the main challenges that the territory is facing as he sees it, he named drugs as one.
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One of the requirements for candidates running for the gubernatorial election is that they must have lived in the territory for 5 years prior to the general elections.
Pulaalii said he has checked with the Election Office and he is eligible, because the law does give exceptions for those working for the federal government or serving the military.
