The Mayor

Mayor Gaston TONG SANG, born August 7, 1949 in Bora Bora, is a trained engineer.  He obtained his Engineering Diploma, specialising in Reinforced and Pre-stressed Concrete at the Center for Advanced Studies in Construction in Paris.  (Centre des Hautes Etudes de la Construction de Paris.)

Upon returning to French Polynesia in 1976, he joined the local Civil Services within the Public Works.  Quickly, he joined the local government as Project Manager before becoming the Office Director to the Minister of Public Works from 1984-1986.  Then, he became Minister of Public Works and Planning (April 1986 to December 1987; April 1991 to May 2001). He then held the Ministry of Land Affairs (May 2001 to October 2004), and that of Small and Medium Enterprises, Industry, Trade and Energy (October 2004 to February 2005).

In 1989 he was elected Mayor of Bora Bora and the same year, the position of President of the Union for the Promotion of Communes in French Polynesia until 2008.

At the age of 40, Gaston TONG SANG began his political career by joining the Federation of Tahoeraa Huiraatiraa where he led the list of the Leeward Islands Archipelago.  In October 2006, carried by the union of autonomist forces, he acceded for the first time as  the President of French Polynesia on December 26, 2006.  A government of united autonomists was then composed of Ministers from the political parties of Tahoeraa Huiraatiraa , Aia Api, Rautahi and Te Niu Hau Manahune.  In July 2007, the Ministers from Tahoeraa Huiraatiraa resigned from the government.  An apparent split was evident within the Tahoeraa Huiraatiraa party.  Thus, on August 31, 2007, Gaston TONG SANG was overthrown following the adoption of a motion of censure.

In October 2007, he created his own political party, O Porinetia To Tatou Ai’a, My Polynesia, My Roots. Then, he federated all the autonomist political parties under a single list, To Tatou Ai’a, which he led in the 2008 territorial elections by winning 27 seats in the Assembly of French Polynesia.  On April 15, 2008, he acceded for the second time, for a period of 10 months, to become the President of the Government of French Polynesia.  Then in 2009, he returned for a third time as President of French Polynesia until April 1, 2011.

In 2013, he participated in the creation of the A Ti’a Porinetia party and, as head of the Raromatai list, kept his seat as Representative to the Assembly.  This party, when joined by other representatives, became the Parlementary group, Union for an Autonomist Majority, until 2016 when the Tapura Huiraatira party was founded.

In 2018, the Tapura Huiraatira party won the Territorial elections and Gaston TONG SANG became President of the Assembly of French Polynesia to this day.

On March 15, 2020, the Bora Bora To Tatou Ai’a party won the first round of the Municipal elections and Gaston TONG SANG maintained his Mayoral position for his 6th consecutive term. During his career, his commitment to his community and its people has earned him several honorary distinctions rewarding his great generosity, demonstrated through his actions as a man and a politician.  He was thus decorated: Knight of the Legion of Honor, Knight of the National Order of Merit and Knight of the Order of the Academic Palm.