Former Gov. Ralph DLG Torres and independent candidate Rep. Blas Jonathan “BJ” T. Attao appear headed for a runoff after neither secured the required majority in Tuesday's gubernatorial election, while the attorney general's race is also facing a second round of voting, according to unofficial results released by the Commonwealth Election Commission Wednesday morning.
Torres and his running mate, Benjamin Jones, received 6,437 votes, or 49.5%, while Attao and his running mate, House Speaker Edmund Villagomez, garnered 5,043 votes, or 38.7%.
The third gubernatorial ticket of Lawrence F. Camacho and Edith Deleon Guerrero received 1,537 votes, or 11.8%.
Torres leads Attao by 1,394 votes but fell short of the more than 50% required under the CNMI Constitution to win outright.
The unofficial results point to a runoff between the two leading gubernatorial tickets, subject to certification by the CEC.
A runoff is also expected in the attorney general's race, where Joaquin DLG Torres leads with 5,073 votes, or 39.7%, followed by Michael Evangelista with 3,854 votes, or 30.2%, and Jonathan Glass with 3,836 votes, or 30.1%.
With none of the three candidates securing a majority, the Top 2 vote-getters will advance to a runoff following certification.
Only 18 votes separate Evangelista and Glass for second place, making certification particularly important in determining who will face Torres in the runoff.
Under the CNMI Constitution and Commonwealth election law, runoff elections for governor and attorney general must be held 14 days after the CEC certifies the general election results if no candidate receives more than half of the votes.
In an interview with Marianas Press early Wednesday morning, former governor Torres said he welcomed another round of campaigning, noting that the CNMI faces different economic circumstances from when he previously held office.
"I've been through this process, right? And so today, everything is different. I think, obviously, the economy is different," Torres said.
"But this is a process that we embrace, and we're ready to go to the runoff and meet the 50.1 percent or 50 plus 1 percent."
Jones thanked their supporters and said the campaign would intensify its house-to-house efforts over the next two weeks.
"We're going to be out there grinding," Jones said.
"So, you know, the job is not done, and we just want to remind everybody what we're here for and why we're here."
Torres said their campaign would continue focusing on economic recovery, restoring retirees' 25% benefits, lowering electricity costs to 22 cents per kilowatt-hour, returning public school students to a five-day schedule, and restoring government employees' regular 80-hour biweekly work schedules.
He also expressed interest in reaching out to the Camacho-Deleon Guerrero ticket, which finished third in the unofficial results.
"Of course, of course. We would like to reach out to them and hopefully we can meet up with them because I also embrace what their goals are and how they want to build an economy," Torres said.
Despite falling short of an outright victory, Torres said he was encouraged by the support his ticket received.
"We're very proud that we have 49.5 percent of the votes," he said. "We're not there yet, but obviously it's a win for all of us."
At the Attao-Villagomez campaign headquarters at Garapan Central Park, Attao thanked the CEC, voters, and campaign volunteers while stressing that his team would await the official results before deciding its next steps.
"Right now we have unofficial results that have been posted and we'll await the official results," Attao said.
"For now, we await the actual official results so that we'll see what the next steps are and we'll hold on that until the election commission finalizes that."
Attao also congratulated candidates who appeared to have won their respective races and commended those who participated in the election.
Villagomez likewise thanked their supporters, acknowledging the tense election night while urging the public to await certification.
"It was a lot of ups and downs and you know holding your breath and all that but you know we want to thank everyone for tuning in," Villagomez said.
"There's still time to go and I just want to say let's just stay tuned and let's get the official results and we'll see where we go from there."
Meanwhile, independent gubernatorial candidates Lawrence F. Camacho and Edith Deleon Guerrero, whose ticket placed third with 1,537 votes, or 11.8%, said they would respect the outcome of Tuesday's election while thanking their supporters.
In an interview with Marianas Press at around 3:30am, Camacho said their campaign remained focused on offering practical solutions and respecting the will of the voters.
"The winner of today's election, the winner of this campaign, and the election here in 2026 will be the people," Camacho said. "And so, we honor the people's will to come out, vote, and elect the direction of where they want this commonwealth to go."
He also thanked their campaign committee and supporters for their efforts despite entering the race later than their opponents.
Deleon Guerrero, meanwhile, said their campaign focused on economic stability and restoring public confidence in government.
"Our platform was very clear of how to steer the commonwealth forward and to make sure that we become financially stable and also to restore confidence in government," she said.
"And so, we will respect their desire for whoever will be the ultimate winner of this election."
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