In the 2014 gubernatorial race, Republican Governor Eloy Inos and his running mate, Ralph Torres, were elected to a full four-year term. The Inos-Torres ticket defeated independent candidate, Heinz Hofschneider, in the gubernatorial runoff on November 18, 2014. Governor Eloy Inos died in office at a hospital in Seattle, Washington, on Monday, December 28, 2015. Because of the time difference between Seattle, it was already Tuesday morning, December 29, in the Northern Mariana Islands at the time of Governor Inos' death. Lieutenant Governor Ralph Torres became the new Governor of the Northern Mariana Islands on Tuesday, December 29, to serve the remainder of Inos' unexpired term. Victor Hocog, the then-President of the Northern Mariana Islands Senate, was sworn in as the new Lieutenant Governor later that day on December 29. On November 8, 2017, Lt. Governor Victor Hocog announced that he would not run for re-election as lieutenant governor in 2018. Instead, Hocog would seek election for one of the two Senate seats representing the island of Rota in the 2018 general election. Governor Ralph Torres declared his candidacy for a full term in a press conference on November 19, 2017, at his home in As Teo. Torres chose Senate PresidentArnold Palacios as his new running mate for lieutenant governor in 2018 gubernatorial contest. Juan Babauta, the former Governor from 2002 to 2006, announced his candidacy on April 12, 2018, as an independent. He selected Dr. Rita Sablan, the former commissioner of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Public School System, as his running mate for lieutenant governor.
Election postponement
The Northern Mariana Islands' general and gubernatorial elections were originally scheduled for Tuesday, November 6, 2018, to correspond with the nationwide 2018 United States midterm elections. However, Typhoon Yutu made landfall in the Northern Mariana Islands as a Category 5super typhoon, devastating the main islands of Saipan and Tinian. In response, Governor Torres postponed all elections in the Northern Mariana Islands until Tuesday, November 13, 2018, including the gubernatorial race. Early voting was held from Tuesday, November 6, 2018, until Monday, November 12, 2018.
Candidates
Republican
Ralph Torres – incumbent Governor since December 29, 2015
*Running mate: Arnold Palacios - President of the Northern Mariana Islands Senate in the 20th Legislature since January 9, 2017. Palacios was announced as Torres's running mate on November 19, 2017
Independent
Juan Babauta - former Governor and 2014 gubernatorial candidate; candidacy announced on April 12, 2018
*Joe Inos - former Mayor of Rota and brother of the late Gov. Eloy Inos. Announced gubernatorial candidacy on January 19, 2018. Withdrew from the race on February 7, 2018, citing a lack of unified support from his family.
Results
The gubernatorial contest was held on Tuesday, November 13, 2018, having been delayed one week due to recovery efforts from Typhoon Yutu. Early voting began on November 6. Incumbent Ralph Torres won re-election to his first full term.