OPPOSITION TO REDUCING SENATORS' PAY

Just a few days ago, REPUBLICAN Senator Chris Duenas introduced legislation that would reduce the salary of a Guam Senator and use the funds from the reduction for school busses. While the idea is a noble one, we here at 671 Politics can't support it. For one, Guam senators make $60,000 a year...even if each of the fifteen senators salaries are cut, it would not be enough to positively impact the over stressed bussing issues of the Department of Education and the Department of Public Works. Second, a reduction of pay will certainly not attract the future leaders (who are intelligent and capable) to seek a run for the Legislature. Instead of reducing legislators' salaries, we should look at

1. NOT PURCHASING ANY NEW GOVERNMENT VEHICLE FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF GUAM (EXCLUDING PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY AGENCIES AND INCLUDING THE OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR) FOR SEVERAL YEARS and use the savings to obtain new school busses and new school bus drivers.

2. INCREASE THE GRT BY ONE PERCENT FOR ONE FISCAL YEAR OR TWO PERCENT FOR TWO FISCAL YEARS TO COVER THE COSTS OF PROCURING NEW SCHOOL BUSSES AND SCHOOL BUS DRIVERS - if "everything needs to be on the table" THEN EVERYTHING MUST BE ON THE TABLE.

I am not a member of the Guam Legislature, nor have I ever been or will I ever be. However these "ideas" that seek to strip the powers and influence of a separate and co-equal branch of DEMOCRATIC government need to stop. The above two ideas would generate much more funds than the "window-dressing" legislation.

Priorities in Washington?

There is a huge problem with Washington, D.C. when it comes to setting the country's (and ultimately Guam's) fiscal priorities. We have thousands of unemployed workers here on island and millions around the mainland; graduating with a college degree is becoming more expensive and there is no guarantee that there will be a good paying job when a student graduates (both here and in the states); residents who have a tough time finding a job (and thus must be on welfare) are having to go through much stricter requirements (thanks to fiscal conservatives who deride welfare programs)...YET

BILLIONS OF DOLLARS ARE BEING SPENT ON
1. sending rovers to Mars seeking out evidence of PAST life -
2. plans to send humans back to the Moon (Moon base)
3. plans to send humans to Mars

The same fiscal conservatives that wage constant war on programs that protect those who are most vulnerable = SOCIAL SECURITY, MEDICAID, MEDICARE, WELFARE  and who seek to lessen the importance of hard working public workers such as TEACHERS are the very same (i.e. Newt Gingrich and the Moon Base, et. al) who seek to continue to fund NASA with billions of dollars that could otherwise be spent on putting unemployed people back to work and thus off of publicly funded welfare programs. http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/newt-gingrich-promises-moon-base-flights-mars-reality/story?id=15449425

We think that funding for NASA should only be enough to cover programs that have the protection of the people of Earth from space borne threats (asteroids, etc) in mind and that is it. At a time of continued high unemployment and sky rocketing prices of EVERYTHING...sending astronauts back to the Moon or to Mars is a luxury that we just can't afford at the moment.

Truly helping the people of Guam: PART ONE

The government of Guam should look at the following for ideas to help reduce costs and generate extra income (since everybody nowadays seem to be an expert at cutting costs by solely reducing the influence of the Legislature on policy).

1. Eliminate the Office of the Lt. Governor (transfer duties and responsibilities to the Speaker of the Legislature and the President of the Mayors Council of Guam).
2. Turn Government House in Agana Heights into the Guam State Museum and Convention Center.
3. Eliminate primary elections for contests with only two candidates or less.
4. Seek a cheaper medical insurance provider for the Government of Guam's employees or negotiate lower prices for services offered by the provider selected by the Government.
5. Require that any non resident staying on Guam for longer than one (1) week obtain a temporary driving permit and charge 1/2 the price of a full driver's license (if that person is planning on driving).
6. Eliminate all publicly funded travel for high government employees for a period of three (3) fiscal years and instead look at cheaper modes of communication such as Skype or Teleconferencing if employees absolutely need to participate in such conferences.
7. Eliminate all purchasing of new vehicles for agencies that do not fall under the public safety.
8. Reduce by half the monthly stipends for members of the Consolidated Commission on Utilities OR abolish the Public Utilities Commission and hand its duties and responsibilities to the CCU.
9. When it is not tax season on Guam, employees assigned to tax divisions (and others in DRT) should be reassigned to the Motor Vehicle Section or detailed specifically to track down delinquent tax payers who owe in excess of $100,000 or more to the people of Guam.
10. Create a public work force that would be responsible for general matters (such as trimming vegetation near power lines, cleaning cemeteries and public parks, hunting down brown tree snakes and other pests, etc) minimum wage for those who are unemployed in order to get money into the system. Money for this program could come from the realization of savings for power and water bills for line agencies who utilize solar power generation, or which are merged into other agencies, or which see substantial loss of employees due to resignations, retirements, etc and not filling those positions.
11. Merge the Departments of Public Health and Mental Health into a Department of Public Health and Social Services.
12. Utilize the Department of Labor and the Agency for Human Resources Development to push to have local businesses hire locally first before seeking employees from off island. This again will provide thousands of unemployed individuals a chance to make money and contribute to the economy.

Politics Around Guam, PART 2: AGAT

Municipality of Agat

-Southwest Guam

VILLAGE RATING = LEANS REPUBLICAN

Current Mayor:  Carol S. Tayama (R) – LIKELY REPUBLICAN HOLD

-Democratic Challenger Mr. Bill Cundiff

Current Vice Mayor: Agustin Quintanilla (R) – LEANS DEMOCRATIC PICKUP

-Faces Republican primary (2 Challengers)

-Democratic Challenger: Mr. Derick B. Hills

U.S. 2008 Presidential Election                   2008 Mayoral Election

-Mr. Barack Obama (D) – 993                         Carol S. Tayama (R) - 517 VOTES

-Mr. John McCain (R) – 630                         UNOPPOSED

U.S. 2004 Presidential Election                   2004 Mayoral Election

-Mr. George W. Bush (R) – 1,254                Carol S. Tayama (R) – 1,170 VOTES

-Mr. John Kerry (D) – 592                           John Quidachay (D) – 752 VOTES

U.S. 2000 Presidential Election                   Vice Mayoral

-Mr. George W. Bush (R) – 1,102                Joaquin Topasna (R) – 870 VOTES

-Mr. Al Gore (D) – 880                                  Jesus G. Chaco (D) – 876 VOTES

2010 Gubernatorial Election

-Carl Gutierrez (D) – 1,087

-Edward Calvo (R) – 907

2006 Gubernatorial Election

-Felix Camacho (R) – 1,134

-Robert Underwood (D) – 859

2002 Gubernatorial Election

-Felix Camacho (R) – 1,416

-Robert Underwood (D) – 958

1998 Gubernatorial Election

-Carl Gutierrez (D) – 1,319

-Joe Ada (R) - 1,228

1994 Gubernatorial Election

-Carl Gutierrez (D) – 1,336

-Thomas Tanaka ® - 1,181

1990 Gubernatorial Election

-Joe Ada (R) - 1,341

-Madeleine Bordallo (D) – 882

Source: Bureau of Statistics and Plans, 2010 Guam Statistical Yearbook

Independents and ballot placements

In recent weeks, there has been some confusion when it comes to the ballots for the primary election races. First, independent candidates could not be on the ballot as Guam law had previously divided the ballot between Republicans and Democrats (ostensibly in an effort to reduce cross-over voting..which is usually quite high during primary elections in the past). The Guam Legislature immediately sought to address this and passed a bill which allowed independent candidates to now be on the ballot. Secondly. there was a strong effort to cancel the Public Auditor primary (as only ONE candidate...the incumbent, was running). However the Guam Election Commission could not unilaterally change the ballot to reflect this.

It is our opinion here at 671Politics that primaries are an "inter-party" affair only. Independent candidates should be allowed to automatically advance to the General Election ballot. We believe that the word INDEPENDENT is an umbrella word that encompasses political beliefs spread across the political spectrum, so grouping an independent candidate (or candidates) together in a primary ballot is ridiculous. Requiring that an independent candidate (A). compete in a primary (when he/she has no political opponents on the independent line) and (B). receiving a minimum number of votes in order to advance to the general election completely ignores the harsh reality that the absolute majority of registered voters on Guam are neither Democratic or Republican.

While it may be too late to act on this issue this election year (With the primary less than a month and a half away), it is important to eventually take a good look at this.

New Poll from Dr. McNinch

A new poll is out from University of Guam Dr. Ron McNinch's class. While we commend Dr. McNinch's students for taking the time to do these polls, we here at 671Politics (again) have several issues with the mechanics of the poll.

According to the news release, the students polled 240 individuals about their selections for Congressional Delegate and the Guam Legislature. 240 is a rather small pool of people, even for Guam. In fact, polls taken on the mainland regularly poll on average 500 individuals or more so as to ensure a much better representation of the opinions of the voters. There was also no distinction made (if so we apologize for overlooking it) between registered voters and likely voters or Republican voters or Democratic voters.

The second issue we have with this poll is that once again, there was no head to head matches in the Congressional race. Let us emphasize a point we made in an earlier post: VOTERS WILL NOT BE CHOOSING COME NOVEMBER FROM AMONGST BORDALLO, DIZON, BLAS, AND DIAZ. The primary will eliminate ONE DEMOCRAT, so asking the 240 individuals who they will vote for Delegate without dividing it into head to head matches is somewhat useless, other than to show incumbent Bordallo (D) with a overwhelming lead. It could be possible that if Dizon loses, some of his supporters may gravitate towards Republican Frank Blas or the same can be true if Bordallo loses and some of her supporters may head towards the other party. This is why head to head matchup questions are important. Polls taken in the mainland for congressional primaries do not bunch all political candidates in one question, so hopefully a poll will be taken that will look first at a Bordallo versus Dizon matchup, and a Bordallo versus Blas versus Diaz or a Dizon versus Blas versus Diaz question.

*Even though we have issues with the poll, those issues obviously only apply to the Delegate race. We will be factoring in the results of the poll for the Guam Legislature and we will update our Legislative Predictions soon.

Politics around Guam, Part 1: DEDEDO

Municipality of Dededo (NORTHERN REGION)
Largest populated municipality on Guam
MUNICIPAL RATING = LEANS DEMOCRAT

-Current Mayor: Melissa B. Savares (D) - Running for reelection 2012
RATING: STRONG DEMOCRAT, NO CHALLENGER
-Current Vice Mayor: Andrew Benavente (D) - Running for reelection 2012
RATING: STRONG DEMOCRAT, NO CHALLENGER

2008 U.S. Presidential Election     2004 U.S. Presidential Election      2000 U.S. Presidential El.
Obama-Biden (D) - 55.6%            Bush-Cheney (R) - 62.2%              Bush-Cheney (R) - 45.8%
McCain-Palin (R) - 36.3%            Kerry-Edwards (D) - 29.0%           Gore-Lieberman (D) - 41.9%

2010 Gubernatorial Election          2006 Gubernatorial Election          2002 Gubernatorial Election
Gutierrez (D) - 4,521                     Camacho (R) - 4,373                     Camacho (R) - 5,773
Calvo (R) - 3,872                          Underwood (D) - 3,795                 Underwood (D) - 3,621

1998 Gubernatorial Election          1994 Gubernatorial Election          1990 Gubernatorial Election
Gutierrez (D) - 5,695                     Gutierrez (D) - 5,639                      Ada (R) - 4,026
Ada (R) - 4,250                             Tanaka (R) - 3,712                         Bordallo (D) - 3,980


2008 Mayoral Election
Savares, Melissa (D) - 1,737 votes - 69.5%
Benavente, Andrew (D) - 1,733 - 69.3%

2004 Mayoral Election
Savares, Melissa (D) - 4,438 votes - 66.7%
Duenas, Scott (R) - 2,212 votes - 33.3%

2004 Vice Mayoral Election
Benavente, Andrew (D) - 3,725 votes - 56.9%
Rivera, Lawrence (R) - 2,811 votes - 42.9%

Mayors
Melissa Savares (D)
Scott Oscar Duenas (R)
Jose Rivera (R)

Vice Mayors
Andrew Benavente (D)
Melissa Savares (D)

Source: Bureau of Statistics and Plans, Government of Guam


next municipality: Municipality of Agat

Potential for a tough Democratic primary in the works.

Guam Delegate Madeleine Z. Bordallo usually would coast to reelection not only in the Democratic primary but also in the general election. Here at 671Politics, we would generally agree with that assessment. We like Delegate Bordallo and have nothing but the upmost respect for the work she has accomplished despite the U.S. House of Representatives being controlled for the majority of her time in D.C. by fiscally conservative Republicans whose only mantra is to "cut, cut, cut". However, there has been a number of primaries this election year across the country where House incumbents have been turned out of office by strong intra-party opponents. Our personal opinions of Delegate Bordallo aside, we still expect her to win the Democratic nomination...albeit facing a stronger challenge than her last Democratic opponent. Her current Democratic rival, Mr. Karlo Dizon, has defied early expectations that his campaign would not catch fire or would only appeal to a certain demographic, but it has most certainly done the opposite. The most obvious example of this is the recent announcement that the Campaign Chairman for Dizon for Congress is none other than Mr. Frank Schacher, Chairman of the Chamorro Tribe and a noted Chamorro rights activist for the past several decades.

http://mvguam.com/local/news/24585-delegate-campaign-chairs-announced.html

Mr. Dizon still has quite a ways to go just to catch up to Delegate Bordallo. Our preliminary rating (for now) does not change, as we still anticipate Del. Bordallo to be the Democratic nominee.

Diaz (and other independents) can now run

http://pacificnewscenter.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=25270:session-bill-revising-ballot-to-allow-for-independent-candidates-passed-unanimously&catid=45:guam-news&Itemid=156

good news for residents of Guam who are not Republicans or Democrats.

Primary Ballot Placements

Legislative Candidates
DEMOCRATS
1. Won Pat, Judith
2. Pangelinan, Ben
3. Guthertz, Judith
4. Naholowaa, Leah Beth
5. Ada, Thomas
6. Gumataotao, Gary
7. Rodriguez, Dennis
8. Aguon, Frank
9. San Agustin, Joe
10. Palacios, Adolpho
11. Cruz, Benjamin
12. Toves, Benedicto
13. San Nicolas, Michael
14. Respicio, Rory
15. Muna Barnes, Tina
REPUBLICANS
1. Aquiningoc, Antonio
2. Atalig, Javier
3. Servino, Jose
4. Cotton, Elmore
5. Mabini, Shirley
6. Morrison, Tommy
7. Taijeron, Mana
8. Taitano, Michelle
9. McCreadie, Brant
10. Yamashita, Aline
11. Ada, Tony
12. Mendiola, Adonis
13. Duenas, Christopher
14. Sarmiento, William
15. Limtiaco, Michael
16. Blas, Roland

http://pacificnewscenter.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=25244:gec-ballot-placement-drawing-won-pat-first-on-democratic-ballot-aquiningoc-gets-top-slot-on-gop-side&catid=45:guam-news&Itemid=156

569 page views since the creation of Guam Politics and our OWN OPINIONS

Thank you to all who have taken time to check out our blog. It was a pretty slow first few months as election season wasn't in full swing yet. Now, with the deadline for candidates for most public offices to turn in their candidate packets now past, you can expect much more in the form of analysis, opinions, and ratings from us.

Please continue to grace our humble blog with your visit, and we look forward to bringing you more exciting news as Election 2012 approaches.

THANK YOU
GOD BLESS YOU ALL AND GOD BLESS GUAM!

3 candidates drop out, 1 didn't meet minimum requirements

Public Auditor Doris Flores Brooks looks set to continue her unopposed reelection contests, as the only other individual to submit candidate forms (Zeny Nace) withdrew from the contest.

-According to the Pacificnewscenter, "Republican senatorial candidate Paul Reyes did not meet the qualifications for certification".

The Pacificnewscenter further added "Democrat Philipe Cruz and Republican John Lujan submitted written documentation for their names to be removed from the senatorial race".

http://pacificnewscenter.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=25224:video-4-candidates-dropped-as-gec-prepares-to-certify-primary-election-list&catid=45:guam-news&Itemid=156

This brings down the lists of candidates for both parties to
(15) Democrats and (16) Republicans pending continued certification and does not change the first legislative predictions.

Supporting Resolution 405

We here at Guam Politics support the passage of Resolution 405, the full text of which can be found on the Guam Legislature's website. Introduced by Senators Aline Yamashita (R) and Rory Respicio (D), it is "Relative to encouraging the accurate location attribution of the Challenger Deep in order to create the widespread awareness of Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and Micronesia and secure potential economic benefits for the people of Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas and Micronesia".

As mentioned in the Resolution, the area encompassing the geographic feature now known as the Marianas Trench has been an integral part of the life of the region's people going back thousands of years. Also touched on in the Resolution is that nearly every expedition exploring the Trench has been launched from Guam (due to the geographical proximity). We believe that the people of the islands surrounding the trench should be able to realize any economic benefits that come from media publicity of trench diving and any other commercial activities that go along with it.

We strongly disagree with those who oppose this resolution for whatever their reasons may be. No one told anyone to dive into the trench, but as long as they are doing so and they are realizing the benefits..than those benefits should extend to their hosts as well.

#have a great weekend Guam!

We love polls, but..

Any polls that are taken THIS FAR OUT from the primary and general elections in our view are pretty much worthless, as they only serve as an indicator of name recognition. Polls on Guam also do not distinguish between LIKELY VOTERS AND REGULAR VOTERS..Likely voters are generally understood to be those who no matter the weather or an invasion from Mars, will go to the voting booth and vote. Regular voters are those who are of voting age but who are not necessarily indicating that they will go and vote. It doesn't matter as much here on Guam due to less strict political party affiliation, but polls across the mainland also tend to identify Republican voters and Democratic voters because after all, voters can only vote for one party in a primary. Polls that bunch a group of Republican, Democratic, and/or Independent candidates for an office together and ask people to choose one are also worthless because of the SOLE fact that the number of candidates will be winnowed down from the Primary.

#just our thoughts. have a great Friday and a safe and fun weekend Guahan!

First Legislative Prediction

This prediction is the first of what will be many, but as the fields of legislative candidates appear to be set, it is now possible to have an insight as to the composition of the 32nd Guam Legislature. As mentioned, this prediction will change as the candidates start reaching out to voters and engaging the community and spending money on advertisements and billboards.

With that being said, we here at Guam Politics currently anticipate anything from a status quo of 9 Democrats and 6 Republicans (Democratic favorable election) to a gain of 1-2 seats for the Republicans (Republican favorable election).

PRIMARY LEGISLATIVE FIELDS SET - PENDING CERTIFICATION

With the occasional surprise (i.e. former Republican senator Jim Espaldon not running), the Legislative Primary Fields for Republicans and Democrats are set, pending certification from the Guam Election Commission.

Guam Election Commission Website VV

DEMOCRATS (16)

Thomas Ada - INCUMBENT

Frank B. Aguon, Jr. - FORMER SENATOR

Benjamin J.F. Cruz - INCUMBENT

Philipe J. Cruz - CANDIDATE

Gary Gumataotao - CANDIDATE (*lost 2010 Attorney-General election)

Judith Guthertz - INCUMBENT 

Tina Muna Barnes - INCUMBENT 

Leah Beth Naholowaa - CANDIDATE (former Director of Labor)

Adolpho Palacios Sr. - INCUMBENT

Vicente Pangelinan - INCUMBENT

Rory Respicio - INCUMBENT

Dennis Rodriguez - INCUMBENT

Joe San Agustin - CANDIDATE (Member of the Guam Education Board)

Michael San Nicolas - CANDIDATE 

Benedicto Toves - CANDIDATE

Judith Won Pat - INCUMBENT

REPUBLICANS (18)

Tony Ada - INCUMBENT

Antonio Aquiningco - CANDIDATE

Javier Atalig - CANDIDATE

Roland Blas - CANDIDATE

Elmore Cotton - CANDIDATE

Christopher Duenas - INCUMBENT

Michael Limtiaco - CANDIDATE

John Lujan - CANDIDATE

Shirley Mabini - INCUMBENT

Brant McCreadie - CANDIDATE

Thomas Morrison - CANDIDATE

Paul Reyes - CANDIDATE

William Sarmiento - CANDIDATE

Jose Servino - CANDIDATE

Mana Taijeron - INCUMBENT

Michelle Taitano - CANDIDATE

Aline Yamashita - INCUMBENT

FIRST RATINGS CHANGES FOR MAYORS/VICE MAYORS

FIRST RATINGS CHANGES FOR MAYORAL/VICE MAYORAL

MUNICIPALITY (POSITION) – PRELIMINARY RATING ---FIRST RATINGS CHANGE

HAGATNA (MAYORAL) --- STRONG REPUBLICAN TO STRONG REPUBLICAN

AGANA HEIGHTS (MAYORAL) --- LIKELY REPUBLICAN TO LIKELY REPUBLICAN  

AGAT (MAYORAL) --- LEANS REPUBLICAN TO LIKELY REPUBLICAN

            (VICE MAYORAL) --- TOSS/UP TO LEANS DEMOCRAT

ASAN-MAINA (MAYORAL) --- LEANS REPUBLICAN TO TOSS/UP

BARRIGADA (MAYORAL) --- STRONG DEMOCRAT TO STRONG DEMOCRAT

            (VICE MAYORAL) --- LEANS DEMOCRAT TO LIKELY DEMOCRAT

CHALAN PAGO (MAYORAL) --- LIKELY DEMOCRAT TO STRONG DEMOCRAT

DEDEDO (MAYORAL) --- LIKELY DEMOCRAT TO STRONG DEMOCRAT

            (VICE MAYORAL) --- LIKELY DEMOCRAT TO STRONG DEMOCRAT

INARAJAN (MAYORAL) --- LIKELY REPUBLICAN TO LIKELY REPUBLICAN

MANGILAO (MAYORAL) --- LIKELY REPUBLICAN TO LIKELY REPUBLICAN

             (VICE MAYORAL) --- LIKELY REPUBLICAN TO STRONG REPUBLICAN

MERIZO (MAYORAL) --- TOSSUP TO TOSSUP

M-T-M (MAYORAL) --- STRONG REPUBLICAN TO STRONG REPUBLICAN

PITI (MAYORAL)- TOSS/UP TO TOSS/UP

SANTA RITA (MAYORAL) – LIKELY DEMOCRAT TO STRONG DEMOCRAT

SINAJANA (MAYORAL) --- STRONG DEMOCRAT TO STRONG DEMOCRAT

          (VICE MAYORAL) --- STRONG DEMOCRAT TO STRONG DEMOCRAT

TALOFOFO (MAYORAL) --- LIKELY DEMOCRAT TO STRONG DEMOCRAT

TAMUNING (MAYORAL) --- STRONG REPUBLICAN TO STRONG REPUBLICAN

          (VICE MAYORAL) --- STRONG REPUBLCIAN TO STRONG REPUBLICAN

UMATAC (MAYORAL) --- LEANS DEMOCRAT TO LEANS DEMOCRAT

YIGO (MAYORAL) --- STRONG DEMOCRAT TO STRONG DEMOCRAT

           (VICE MAYORAL) --- STRONG DEMOCRAT TO STRONG DEMOCRAT

YONA (MAYORAL) --- LEANS DEMOCRAT TO LIKELY DEMOCRAT

RATINGS CHANGES FAVORING REPUBLICANS

1.     AGAT (MAYORAL)

2.     MANGILAO (VICE MAYORAL)

RATINGS CHANGES FAVORING DEMOCRATS

1.     ASAN-MAINA (MAYORAL)

2.     AGAT (VICE MAYORAL)

3.     BARRIGADA (VICE MAYORAL)
      CHALAN PAGO/ORDOT (MAYORAL)

     DEDEDO (MAYORAL)

4.     DEDEDO (VICE MAYORAL)
      SANTA RITA (MAYORAL)

5.     TALOFOFO (MAYORAL)

6.     YONA (MAYORAL)

Supporting Obamacare

At the risk of rehashing points made throughout the battle that was Obamacare (Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act), I support it because of the following *the provisions most applicable to Guam

1. Expansion of Medicaid to a larger pool of people.
2. Dependents can now stay under their parents' insurance until their 26th birthday.
3. Insurance companies can no longer deny coverage because of pre-existing conditions for children under the age of 19 years.
4. The creation of a rebate that insurers must pay if they do not spend a certain percent of premium dollars on eligible expenses to policy holders.
5. Insurers are prohibited from discriminating against or charging higher rates for any individuals based on pre-existing medical conditions.

I applaud the United States Supreme Court's decision to uphold the main provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. We can't keep expecting people with no insurance to not keep themselves medically fit if the only thing they are able to do is go to a hospital for a life threatening emergency. What is the bad thing about making sure EVERYONE (REGARDLESS OF FINANCIAL ABILITIES) HAS ACCESS TO PROPER MEDICAL CARE?

FILING DEADLINE APPROACHES

Candidates for the Guam Legislature, Guam Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives, Mayors and Vice Mayors have less than 24 hours to turn in their candidate packets. According to the Guam Election Commission website, the deadline is TOMORROW; JULY 3; 5PM.

As soon as a clear idea of who is running emerges, we will begin the process of updating our preliminary base ratings FOR ALL PARTISAN RACES.

Candidates OFFICIALLY file for Delegate race

Karlo Dizon (D) officially filed his candidate packet today (July 2nd) for U.S. Delegate, establishing the inter party battle with incumbent Madeleine Z. Bordallo in the September primary election.

http://pacificnewscenter.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=25096:dizon&catid=45:guam-news&Itemid=156


Despite not receiving much media attention but having the potential to attract Chamorro rights proponents, Mr. Jonathan Blas Diaz has also filed his candidate packet to run for Guam Delegate (previously he had run as a Democrat, losing to incumbent Madeleine Bordallo) but listing his political affiliation on the Guam Election Commission's website as an Independent.

http://gec.guam.gov/2012/01/31/candidate-packets/


This now brings to an all time high FOUR candidates running for the U.S. Delegate position:
-2 Democrats
-1 Republican
-1 Independent

As the filing deadline is TOMORROW, we anticipate no further candidates for the position.