The 2022 election

Judge pro tempore Alberto E. Tolentino’s decision not to try Gov. Torres on charges of “misconduct in public office, theft, and contempt” until after the 2022 election forces the CNMI electorate to vote for one of the three candidates without confirming the governor’s guilt or innocence. It also poses some interesting questions for students of Marianas history and politics.

The only similar event in Marianas political history was the indictment of Guam Gov. Ricardo J. Bordallo, Democrat, by U.S. Attorney K. William O’Connor only three days before the 1986 Democratic Party primary election.

Bordallo defeated Speaker of the Guam Legislature Carl T. C. Gutierrez, Democrat, in the primary, but lost to Joseph Flores Ada, Republican, in the general election, even with Gutierrez’s full support. The Guam electorate had clearly decided that Bordallo was guilty, even without a trial.

The situation today in the CNMI is different. Gov. Torres, Republican, is tied into a three-way race with no primary election. With little chance of any one of the three candidates for governor getting over 50% of the votes, the two top vote-getters will face a run-off election two weeks later. Should Torres somehow win the runoff, the question becomes: Will Tolentino conduct the trial before or after the inauguration?

If the trial is held before the inauguration and Torres is found guilty, will there be another election?

If, on the other hand, Torres loses either the general election or the runoff, and the trial is held after the inauguration of either Palacios or Sablan and Torres is found not guilty, would Torres be able to demand a new election?

As to the trial of Ricky Bordallo, he finally faced the judge on Feb. 13, 1987. He was found guilty by a jury of his peers on 10 of 17 counts of extortion, bribery or gratuity, conspiracy, and witness tampering. Three hours before he was scheduled to be transferred to a minimum-security prison in Boron, California on Jan. 31, 1990, Bordallo committed suicide in Hagåtña by wrapping himself in a Guam flag, chaining himself to statue of Chief Kepuha, and shooting himself in the head with an illegal .38 caliber pistol.

The only similar case in the Northern Mariana Islands was the impeachment of former governor Benigno Repeki Fitial, founder of the CNMI Covenant Party, by the CNMI House of Representatives on Feb. 11, 2013. He was scheduled to face trial before the CNMI Senate to determine if he should be removed from office, but resigned on Feb. 20, 2013. On May 14, 2015, Fitial pleaded guilty before Judge David A. Wiseman on charges of misconduct in public office and conspiracy to commit theft of services. On Oct. 12, Wiseman ordered Fitial to serve one year in prison. Then-governor Eloy Inos, who had been Fitial’s lieutenant governor, commuted Fitial’s sentence.

It is unfortunate that Judge Tolentino did not push forward with the trial of Gov. Torres, thus allowing the CNMI electorate to cast more informed votes and enjoy the 2023 inauguration without a major controversy.

Don Farrell
Marpo Heights, Tinian