King-Hinds secures second term; Deleon Guerrero concedes defeat

Incumbent Delegate Kimberlyn King-Hinds secured a second term in the U.S. House of Representatives following the Nov. 3 general elections, but the Republican said Wednesday morning that her attention is already on pressing federal issues facing the CNMI, particularly with the gubernatorial race headed for a runoff.

Her challenger, Galvin S. Deleon Guerrero, conceded defeat Wednesday morning, saying he had already called King-Hinds to congratulate her and pledged his support for her continued service to the Commonwealth.

King-Hinds received 8,194 votes, or 63.7%, against Deleon Guerrero's 4,675 votes, or 36.3%, according to unofficial results released by the Commonwealth Election Commission.

The incumbent led by 3,519 votes, securing a clear majority in the two-way contest.

In an interview with Marianas Press Wednesday morning, an exhausted King-Hinds said she viewed the election as a referendum on her first two years representing the Commonwealth in Washington, D.C.

"This re-election was basically the public deciding whether or not I was doing okay with the job that I was doing, whether they were satisfied with my performance and whether, you know, I'm accomplishing what I said I was going to do when I first ran for this position," she said.

King-Hinds thanked voters for giving her another opportunity to serve but said she was already preparing for her return to Washington on Saturday, with a federal continuing resolution set to expire in December.

She said the gubernatorial runoff could complicate efforts to seek additional federal assistance for the CNMI, particularly for public schools and utilities.

"The fact that now we're headed off to a runoff, you know, there's going to be this gap, you know, in terms of who's going to be the governor," she said.

King-Hinds said the CNMI should already be preparing a formal request to President Donald Trump for additional relief through federal legislation.

She praised Gov. David M. Apatang for his advocacy but expressed concern that the transition to a new administration could delay negotiations with Washington.

"And so the sit-and-wait situation is really not a benefit to us given how very little time we have to make the ask to President Trump," she said.

Among her immediate priorities are addressing the suspension of the Electronic Visa Update System-Temporary Admission Parole program, reduced government employee work hours, public school funding, and the Commonwealth's struggling economy.

Despite receiving nearly 64% of the votes, King-Hinds said she was more focused on the work ahead than celebrating her reelection.

"I'm incredibly grateful that the public, I think, you know, that to me is a show of full faith and confidence," she said.

King-Hinds also reaffirmed her support for the Republican gubernatorial ticket of former Gov. Ralph DLG Torres and Ben Jones, which is headed for a runoff against independents BJ T. Attao and Edmund Villagomez, subject to CEC certification.

She said their economic priorities align with her own efforts to protect the CNMI's immigration programs, attract new airlines, revive tourism, diversify the economy, and modernize utilities.

"Ralph and Ben's plans are no different than mine," she said.

Meanwhile, Deleon Guerrero said he had already called King-Hinds to congratulate her despite the results remaining unofficial.

"I already called the delegate King-Hinds to congratulate her. I know that not all the results are in or final, but from a numerical standpoint, it's clear that she's going to emerge as the winner of this race," he told Marianas Press in a separate interview Wednesday morning.

Deleon Guerrero said that despite their political differences during the campaign, he wanted King-Hinds to succeed in representing the Commonwealth.

"I told her that now that the election's over, we're one team, we're team CNMI, and I wish her the best and I'm rooting for her," he said.

He acknowledged that the results were not what his campaign had hoped for but said he was proud of his team and grateful to his supporters.

"This is what the people voted for. And I'm okay with that because I think our campaign ran, we, our team ran a wonderful campaign that they should be very proud of," he said.

Deleon Guerrero also urged his supporters to continue working for the Commonwealth's future and support its elected leaders.

King-Hinds closed her interview by thanking her family, campaign volunteers, and voters, promising to continue working for the CNMI once she returns to Washington.

"I will work my heart out to find more opportunities for us," she said, before adding that she would first get some much-needed rest.

The CEC results remain unofficial and subject to certification.