Meleagi Suitonu Chapman is on the ballot for American Samoa’s nonvoting seat in the United States House of Representatives on November 3, 2026. It is her latest challenge to Delegate Amata Coleman Radewagen (R).
The American Samoa Election Office deemed her eligible in September, and she is one of five candidates in the race. American Samoa’s elections are nonpartisan, and party labels do not appear on the ballot. The territory’s delegate can vote in committees but not on final passage of bills.
A familiar name on the ballot
Suitonu Chapman has sought the seat since 2014 and ran against Radewagen in 2016, 2018, 2020, and 2024. She received 1.9% of the vote in 2024. In 2022, she announced a campaign but later decided not to run. She cited tremors near Ta’u, her home island, and her husband’s health needs. Radewagen ran unopposed that year.
From Manu’a
Suitonu Chapman was born in Manono, Samoa, and raised in the village of Amanave, according to Samoa News. She and her husband, James Neil Chapman, have lived in Fitiuta-Leusoali’i, on the island of Ta’u in Manu’a, since 2001. They moved there after she served two decades in the federal government. She graduated from San Diego High School, according to Ballotpedia.
“I love our home, American Samoa and especially my original home, Chapman Reef in the Village of Fitiuta-Leusoali’i, Ta’u Manu’a,” she told Samoa News in 2022.
Veterans, airfare, and federal money
Veterans have been a recurring theme in her campaigns. In 2017, she led a petition to restore Military Airlift Command flights to American Samoa and urged veterans, active-duty personnel, and their dependents to sign it. She said the flights were a privilege available to all states and territories, but that veterans in American Samoa and Samoa seemed to have been forgotten. She said regularly scheduled flights would spare veterans and their families commercial airfare and let them travel more freely to medical appointments in Honolulu.
At a 2018 forum at South Pacific Academy, she was the only congressional candidate to attend. She said waiving the cabotage law, which bars international airlines from flying directly between two US destinations, would let foreign airlines serve the Pago Pago route and bring down fares from Honolulu.
In 2016, she told KHJ News that money was the territory’s biggest need. She said she would put contacts from her federal job to work for American Samoa.
When she announced her 2024 campaign, she pledged to address “critical issues affecting our home, from welfare and health to education and safety.” She said she had specific plans to improve access to healthcare, expand educational opportunities, and ensure the territory’s safety and security.
“I am committed to you, your children, our government and our veterans and I am ready to work tirelessly to serve you,” she said.
Polls will open from 6 am to 6 pm American Samoa time on November 3, 2026, with results expected soon after.
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