CEC voter roll reaches 18,022 ahead of Nov. 3 election

The Commonwealth Election Commission has registered 18,022 voters as of Aug. 7 as it steps up outreach ahead of the Sept. 4 registration deadline for the Nov. 3 general election.

CEC executive director Kayla Magofna reported the figure during the commission’s Aug. 10 meeting at its office in Susupe.

“Voter registration remains ongoing, and our outreach effort continues to be successful,” Magofna told the board.

She said the commission has conducted six registration drives in partnership with the Commonwealth Medicaid Office and held its first community registration drive for northern Saipan on July 27.

Additional drives are planned in Kagman, Koblerville, and Garapan. Tinian and Rota will also hold registration drives, although their dates and venues were still being finalized.

Magofna said the outreach events are intended “to maximize our voter registration for this election.”

The commission continues to update the voter roll using information from the Commonwealth Healthcare Corp.’s vital statistics office. Magofna said the final registration list will be prepared after the Sept. 4 deadline, but the commission will continue removing the names of voters who die before Election Day.

In another major issue, Magofna informed the board that the Office of the Attorney General has recused itself from representing the CEC in matters related to the 2026 attorney general election.

The CEC received the OAG’s formal notice last Aug. 5. According to Magofna, the recusal is connected to an OAG employee running for attorney general.

“As a result, the commission will need to retain outside legal counsel to provide legal representation throughout the election cycle,” Magofna said. “This represents an unforeseen but necessary expense that was not included in our current budget.”

Commissioners questioned the extent of the conflict and noted that the OAG had continued providing legal representation during previous elections in which the sitting attorney general was a candidate.

A temporary lawyer who attended the meeting said he would help the commission communicate with the OAG to better understand its position and determine whether a compromise could be reached.

Magofna said she and the commission chairman plan to meet with Attorney General Edward Manibusan.

“With previous elections, I don’t know why there wasn’t a conflict, but with this election there is,” she said. “So I do plan to meet with him, along with my chairman, and maybe get more insight as to why the AG cannot represent CEC this election cycle.”

The additional legal expense comes as the commission is already seeking $420,000 in supplemental funding to administer the election.

Magofna said the CEC has only eight full-time employees and has been unable to begin hiring seasonal election workers because of funding constraints. The commission has submitted funding requests to the governor, legislative delegations and lawmakers overseeing government spending.

Despite those challenges, Magofna said election preparations remain on schedule. A certified technician inspected and tested the commission’s ballot-tabulation equipment and found it fully operational.

The commission is also completing testing and staff training for a new voter-registration system intended to improve the efficiency, accuracy and security of the registration process.

Magofna urged eligible residents who have not registered to do so before the deadline.

“My message to the voters is come out and register because the deadline is around the corner,” she said.