Opili Talafasi | |
---|---|
Member of the
Niuean Parliament for Hikutavake | |
In office 7 April 1990 – 29 April 2023 | |
Succeeded by | Ian Hipa |
Opili Talafasi is a former Niuean politician who served as a Member of the Niue Assembly for 33 years, from 1990 to 2023.
Talafasi was first elected to the Assembly in the 1990 Niuean general election. [1] At the 1996 election he tied with his opponent, Lagaloga Mitikose, but won the seat when his name was drawn from a hat. [2]
He was narrowly re-elected at the 2011 election, but his re-election led to violence [3] [4] and his son's house was burned down in an arson attack. [5] Continuing disputes over the violence saw Talafasi lock the village out of the local church for several months. [6] [7]
He was re-elected at the 2020 election, [8] but lost his seat by a single vote at the 2023 election. [1]