CNMI voters will be asked to decide on constitutional convention
By Mar-Vic Cagurangan
Seeking a path to revisit the commonwealth’s charter, Northern Marianas Gov. David Apatang is submitting a question to the CNMI voters: “Shall there be a constitutional convention to propose amendments to the Constitution?"
Apatang issued an executive order today, placing the question on the November ballot, “in order to achieve effective and efficient government administration so as to better serve the interests of the commonwealth and its people.”
Ethan Kwon, spokesperson for the governor’s office, said the directive was not driven by any specific proposed changes to the Constitution. “Rather, the governor seeks to provide the public with an opportunity to voice their views on the matter,” he said.
“The governor is exercising his authority pursuant to the CNMI Constitution to place the question on the ballot, as required under CNMI law every 10 years,” Kwon added.
The proposed initiative requires two-thirds threshold of votes to sanction a constitutional convention.
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According to the Commonwealth Elections Commission’s website, the CNMI had 18,022 registered voters in 13 precincts as of Aug. 12.
The CNMI Constitution, which delineates government powers and guarantees rights for citizens, was signed on March 6, 1977 and became effective on Jan. 9, 1978.
The last time the question was placed on the ballot through a legislative initiative was in 2014. House Bill 18-5, however, failed to reach the vote threshold required to facilitate the constitutional amendment process.
“The question of whether to hold a constitutional convention has not been placed on the ballot since the 2014 general election, and the legislature has not acted… to place the question on the ballot for the 2026 general election,” reads the governor’s executive order.
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In 2024, Senate President Edith Deleon Guerrero filed Senate Legislative Initiative 23-3, proposing to present the question to the voters. However, no action was taken on the proposed initiative.
The Commonwealth Constitution was drafted by 39 elected delegates meeting in a constitutional convention on Saipan in 1976. Many of its provisions are mandated by the Covenant, including the bill of rights and the form of government, which upholds the separation of powers of executive, legislative and judicial branches.
The last time the CNMI had a constitutional convention was in 1995, generating 19 proposed amendments, none of which, however, was ratified by the voters.
In 1985, voters ratified 44 amendments proposed by a second constitutional convention that convened that year.
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