The Rt Hon Saufatu Sopoanga (born 22 February 1952, Nukufetau Atoll, Tuvalu[1]) is a political figure from the Pacific nation of Tuvalu. Sopoanga was the eighth Prime Minister[2] and a foreign minister of Tuvalu.
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A member of the Parliament of Tuvalu for the constituency of Nukufetau, Sopoanga served as Finance Minister.[3]
Sopoanga was elected Prime Minister of Tuvalu by MPs on 2 August 2002 after the general election in which previous prime minister Koloa Talake lost his seat. In Tuvalu the Prime Minister is also the Foreign Minister.[1]
There are no political parties in Tuvalu. Sapoanga had a shifting alliance of MPs who supported him, and there was also an opposition group against him. Both Sapoanga's group and the opposition group were plagued by defections. On 26 August 2004, while one of the 15 Members of Parliament was sick in New Zealand and another had defected from Sapoanga's group, the opposition finally deposed Sapoanga in a no confidence vote, 8-6.
On 27 August 2004, Sapoanga resigned from Parliament, and was no longer Prime Minister. He was re-elected to Parliament in October 2004, by a 420-361 vote in his electoral district of Nukufetau island.
In the cabinet of his successor, Maatia Toafa, he held the position of Deputy Prime Minister, as well as Minister for Communications & Transport and Minister for Works & Energy. At the August 2006 parliamentary elections he lost his seat in Parliament, and thus also his position in the cabinet.
| Preceded by Koloa Talake |
Prime Minister of Tuvalu 2002–2004 |
Succeeded by Maatia Toafa |
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