2005 Northern Mariana Islands general election
General elections were held in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) on Saturday, 5 November 2005, electing the governor and Legislature. There was also a referendum on calling a Constitutional Convention, which was approved by voters.[1] The gubernatorial election was the closest in the commonwealth's history, and resulted in the election of Benigno Fitial, narrowly defeating independent Heinz Hofschneider by 84 votes and incumbent Republican Governor Juan N. Babauta by an additional 98 votes.
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Gubernatorial election | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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All 18 seats in the House of Representatives 9 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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All 9 seats in the Senate 5 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Background
The referendum on the Constitutional Convention was called in order to comply with Chapter XVIII, article 2 of the constitution, which required a referendum to be held at least every ten years on convening such a convention.[1] A referendum had been due in 2003 as the last referendum had been in 1993, but the Legislature had failed to organise it.[1]
15,118 people registered with the Election Commission to vote.[2]
Gubernatorial election
Campaigns
Four candidates ran for governor, each with a running mate:
- Benigno Repeki Fitial of the Covenant Party, sitting Speaker of the Northern Mariana Islands House of Representatives and 2001 gubernatorial candidate.[3]
- Timothy Pangelinan Villagomez, sitting Northern Mariana Islands Representative and Vice Speaker of the House at the time of the election.[3]
- Froilan Cruz "Lang" Tenorio of the Democratic Party, former Governor of the Northern Mariana Islands from 1994 until 1998.[3]
- Antonio Aguon Santos, educator and teacher.[3]
- Heinz Sablan Hofschneider, an independent, a sitting member of the Northern Mariana Islands House of Representatives and former Speaker until 2003.[3] Hofschneider is a Republican, but ran as an independent in this election.[3]
- Juan "Pan" Tenorio Guerrero of the Republican Party, incumbent Governor elected in 2001.[3]
- Diego Tenorio Benavente, incumbent Lieutenant Governor of the Northern Mariana Islands elected in 2001.[3]
Results
| Candidate | Party | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Benigno Fitial | Covenant Party | 3,766 | 27.95 | |
| Heinz Hofschneider | Independent | 3,682 | 27.33 | |
| Juan Babauta | Republican Party | 3,584 | 26.60 | |
| Froilan Tenorio | Democratic Party | 2,440 | 18.11 | |
| Total | 13,472 | 100.00 | ||
| Source: Commonwealth Election Commission | ||||
Resident Representative to U.S. Congress
This was the last election to have Resident Representative to U.S. Congress. In 2008, the Consolidated Natural Resources Act of 2008, signed into law by President George W. Bush, replaced the position of resident representative with a nonvoting delegate to the House of Representatives. The new position received the power to serve in congressional committees, to introduce bills, and to vote on proposed legislation in committee, but still had limited powers on the House floor, lacking the right to vote on legislation on the House floor.
Northern Mariana Islands Commonwealth Legislature
Results Summary
| Party | Seats | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| House | Senate | |||||
| Covenant Party | 7 | 3 | ||||
| Republican Party | 7 | 3 | ||||
| Democratic Party | 2 | 2 | ||||
| Independents | 2 | 1 | ||||
| Total | 18 | 9 | ||||
Senate
The Northern Mariana Islands Senate is the upper house of the Northern Mariana Islands Commonwealth Legislature, consisting of nine senators representing three senatorial districts (Saipan & the Northern Islands, Tinian & Aguijan, and Rota), each a Multi-member district with three senators. Six seats in the Northern Mariana Islands Senate were up for 2005 election.
House of Representatives
The Northern Mariana Islands House of Representatives is the lower house of the Northern Mariana Islands Commonwealth Legislature. The house has seven districts, several of which are Multi-member district. All 18 seats in the Northern Mariana Islands House of Representatives were contested in the 2005 election. This was the last election to have 18 members.
Mayors
All four mayoral posts were up for election across the Commonwealth.
Municipal Council
Referendum
| Choice | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|
| For | 7,394 | 58.92 |
| Against | 5,156 | 41.08 |
| Invalid/blank votes | – | |
| Total | 12,550 | 100 |
| Registered voters/turnout | 15,118 | |
| Source: Direct Democracy | ||
References
- Northern Mariana Islands, 5 November 2005: Election of a Constitutional Convention Direct Democracy (in German)
- Casas, Gemma Q. (2009-10-13). "Registered voters up by 15%". Marianas Variety. Retrieved 2009-10-12.
- Hernandez, Criselda B. (2005). "Politics: 4-Way Gubernatorial Election Heats Up". Islands Business. Archived from the original on 2012-02-23. Retrieved 2009-10-11.
External links
- Election results Saipan Tribune
| Governor | |
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| General elections | |
| Mayors | |
| Municipal Councils | |
| US House elections | |
| Referendums | |
See also: Elections and referendums in the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands | |