Naraja: Recount of ballots for Tinian mayor will proceed

Superior Court Presiding Judge Robert C. Naraja ordered yesterday for the recount of ballots for Tinian mayor to proceed on Monday but set the evidentiary hearing and the hearing on motions to dismiss Tinian Mayor Ramon M. Dela Cruz’s election contest for Wednesday.

At a pre-trial hearing yesterday afternoon, Naraja denied the Commonwealth Election Commission’s request to do the recount at the Saipan Superior Court.

Naraja agreed with attorney Mark Hanson, counsel for Dela Cruz, that the people of Tinian deserve to witness the recounting of their votes.

Tinian mayor-elect Joey Patrick San Nicolas did not oppose having Tinian as the venue for the recount.

Naraja said the recount will proceed at the Tinian Superior Court on Monday at 9am.

Naraja said if the tabulating machines will not be available that day, the alternative is manual recounting.

The judge said the evidentiary hearing regarding all issues presented in the case and a hearing on two motions to dismiss the lawsuit will be on Wednesday at 9am instead of the original schedule of Monday.

Chief Prosecutor Brian Flaherty, counsel for CEC, asked to change the venue of the recounting to Saipan considering the hardship in transporting the ballots, bringing in witnesses plus expenses, among other things.

San Nicolas appeared at the hearing with his counsels, Matthew Gregory and Viola Alepuyo. Dela Cruz did not attend the hearing.

CEC recently filed a motion to dismiss the case. San Nicolas filed yesterday a separate motion to dismiss the lawsuit.

In an interview after the hearing, Hanson said the judge changed the date to hear the motion to dismiss and evidentiary hearing due to the holidays. He said there are no more business days between yesterday and Monday so the judge has given them a couple of days to prepare for the evidentiary hearing.

Hanson said the evidentiary hearing will be about Dela Cruz’s claims of irregularities—felony voters, double voting, and lack of ballot control.

San Nicolas said he is confident in the Election Commission’s handling of the Nov. 4 election. The mayor-elect said what is important at the end of the day is for the will of the people of Tinian to prevail.

“If the recount is necessary, then that’s fine,” San Nicolas said.

On his motion to dismiss the case, San Nicolas said they asserted that under the doctrine of exhausting administrative remedies, the court does not have the authority to hear the case.

“The plaintiff failed to exhaust his remedies under the election statute, which is challenging voters all the way up to election day,” he said.

San Nicolas pointed out that Dela Cruz did not challenge any of the voters, therefore he waived those challenges.

CEC has already officially declared San Nicolas of the Republican Party as the winner of the Nov. 4 mayor election by seven votes over Dela Cruz (Independent), 703 to 696.