Peter Tali Coleman

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Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Template:Lead too long Template:Infobox officeholder Peter Tali Coleman (December 8, 1919 – April 28, 1997) was an American Samoan politician and lawyer. Coleman was the first and only person of Samoan descent to be appointed governor of American Samoa between 1956 and 1961 and later became the territory's first and third popularly elected governor from 1978 to 1985 and 1989 to 1993, serving a total of three elected terms.<ref>Craig, Robert D. (2010). Historical Dictionary of Polynesia. Scarecrow Press. Page 51. Template:ISBN.</ref> In between, he had served in different administrative positions for Pacific islands.

Born to an American navy officer and a native mother in American Samoa, he grew up there and in Hawaii and participated in World War II, before becoming a lawyer and then returning to American Samoa to practice law there. In 1955 he was briefly appointed by the Republican federal government as the first Attorney General of American Samoa and then became governor in 1956. During his first administration, Coleman chaired the convention that drafted the Constitution of American Samoa, containing the bill of rights and providing protection for Samoans against alienation of their lands and loss of their culture. His administration also laid the foundation for the American Samoa Fono legislature and produced the official seal and flag of American Samoa.<ref name="pireport.org">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=E1029>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> When the Democrats overtook the federal government, he was replaced and appointed to different administrative positions for Pacific islands.

He came back to American Samoa once more in 1977 to run for the first gubernatorial election of the territory. After American Samoans had finally approved electing their own governor in that year, he was elected the first and third governor in 1977, 1980, and 1988 over his Democratic rival A. P. Lutali each time, losing against him in 1992. He also was the founding chairman of the territory's Republican Party, serving from 1985 to 1988.<ref name="nytimes.com">Template:Cite news</ref> He was the first Republican governor in American Samoa and one of only two Republicans to hold the office, with the other being Pula Nikolao Pula who is the ninth and current governor as of May 2025.

Coleman's career spanned over the entire second half of the 20th century. He is the only governor in the United States whose service spanned five decades and one of the longest-serving governors of any jurisdiction in American history.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Gay, Roxane (2019). The Women of the 116th Congress: Portraits of Power. The New York Times. Page 28. Abrams. Template:ISBN.</ref> He was a recipient of the 1997 American Samoan Governor's Humanitarian Award and gained the chiefly title Uifa’atali from his home village of Pago Pago.<ref>Craig, Robert D. (2002). Historical Dictionary of Polynesia. Scarecrow Press. Page 43. Template:ISBN.</ref> The Peter Tali Coleman Lecture on Pacific Public Policy has been a part of the Pacific Islands Project at Georgetown University, where Coleman received his degree.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 1978, he received an Honorary Doctorate from Chaminade University of Honolulu and in 1970 one from the University of Guam.<ref name="E1029"/>

Background

Early life and career

Born and raised in Pago Pago, American Samoa, Coleman attended the faifeau and Marist schools, before graduating from Saint Louis School in Honolulu, Hawaii. His parents were Navyman Patrick Dyke Coleman from Washington, DC, and Amata Auma from the Uifaatali family. His family title, Uifaatali, was bestowed on him in 1977. Coleman later joined the U.S. Army, rising to the rank of captain during World War II. He returned to the Samoan Islands in the early 1950s and practiced law in Pago Pago and in Apia. He received his law degree from Georgetown University in 1951 and was the first person of Samoan ancestry to receive a law degree from an American university<ref name="pireport.org"/> or from any university.<ref name=E545>Template:Cite journal</ref> He served in American Samoa both as a public defender and as the territory's attorney general.<ref name="Sunia, Fofo I 2009 Page 262">Sunia, Fofo I.F. (2009). A History of American Samoa. Amerika Samoa Humanities Council. Page 262. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref name="pireport.org"/>

Coleman was appointed governor of American Samoa in 1956 by President Dwight Eisenhower. At the conclusion of his term, he served a variety of positions in the Pacific Islands, including district administrator for the Marshall Islands, district administrator for the Marianas Islands, and deputy high commissioner of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, where he also served as acting high commissioner for one year.

When the Republican Party lost the White House in 1960, Coleman was assigned as deputy high commissioner of the U.S. Trust Territories. He served 17 years in that post, returning in 1977 to run in the first gubernatorial election. Coleman was the first Samoan to become Governor in 1956 and the only one who served by appointment. In 1977, he also became the first elected Governor in American Samoa. He was reelected in 1980, lost the 1984 election, and was reelected once again in 1988.<ref name="Sunia, Fofo I 2009 Page 262"/>

Coleman became the first popularly elected Samoan governor after defeating Democrat A. P. Lutali with 60% of the votes in a special runoff election held on November 22, 1977. The election was described by the New York Times as “a major step toward self-determination by island’s residents.” After having turned down the proposal to elect their own Governor in three plebiscites, American Samoans in 1977 had also overwhelmingly approved the measure which allowed them to elect that official.<ref>“GOVERNOR IS ELECTED IN AMERICAN SAMOA: Peter Coleman Is the First to Be Picked by Ballot - Leaders Were Named By U.S. for 77 Years.” New York Times (November 24, 1977). Page 38.</ref>

Death and legacy

Peter Coleman and Nora Stewart of Honolulu were married in 1941. They had thirteen children, twenty-three grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren.<ref name="Sunia, Fofo I 2009 Page 262"/> In 2014, his daughter Aumua Amata Radewagen was elected Delegate to represent American Samoa in the United States House of Representatives. She is the first woman to represent American Samoa in Congress.<ref>Gay, Roxane (2019). The Women of the 116th Congress: Portraits of Power. The New York Times. Page 28. Abrams. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Coleman died in 1997 in Honolulu after a two-year struggle with liver cancer.<ref name="nytimes.com"/><ref name=hst>Template:Cite news</ref>

Coleman's legacy includes the effort to incorporate American Samoa in the Social Security system and the recognition and promotion of tourism as an economic development strategy. He began to rebuild and expand the Tafuna Airstrip to take jet planes. The policy for local autonomy moved further during his years as Governor.<ref>Sunia, Fofo I.F. (2009). A History of American Samoa. Amerika Samoa Humanities Council. Pages 261 and 263. Template:ISBN.</ref>

At the conclusion of Coleman's three-year term, Coleman cited some of the achievements that made him proud. These included changes to the judiciary system with the addition of the district and village courts, the start of the Teacher Corps program, the addition of renal dialysis at LBJ Hospital, and the completion of the Aua-Top Mle and Aoa-Amouli roads.<ref>Sunia, Fofo I.F. (2009). A History of American Samoa. Amerika Samoa Humanities Council. Page 303. Template:ISBN.</ref>

Coleman was responsible for the territory's membership in the National Governors Association (NGA) and the Regional Western Governors Association.<ref name=E1029/>

Political resume

Coleman's political career included:<ref>Adamski, M. (April 29, 1997). 'Man of the pacific' led American Samoa: Peter Coleman, 77, dies here after a two-year battle with cancer. Honolulu Star.</ref><ref>PETER TALI COLEMAN FIRST ELECTED GOVERNOR OF AMERICAN SAMOA: SOONER EDITION]. (May 2, 1997). Pittsburgh Post.</ref>

References

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