The Northern Mariana Islands' 2026 general election is off to the races, with three tickets competing for governor and lieutenant governor and contested races for other key offices ahead of the 3 November vote.

Former governor Ralph DLG Torres is seeking a return to office under the Republican banner with educator Benjamin Jones Jr as his running mate, while two independent tickets - Blas Jonathan "BJ" Attao and House Speaker Edmund Villagomez, and former education commissioner Dr Lawrence Camacho and former Senate president Edith Deleon Guerrero - are also seeking the Commonwealth's top two posts.

The three lieutenant governor candidates have already faced each other at the Saipan Chamber of Commerce's 2026 CNMI Lt Governor Candidates Business Forum, where the economy, workforce shortages, immigration, tourism, government spending and disaster resilience dominated discussion.

Jones argued that rebuilding the private sector should precede major reductions in government employment.

"Right now, the government looks large because our economy is small," he said.

Edith Deleon Guerrero advocated gradually reducing payroll costs through attrition and using federal grants to offset some expenses now paid from local revenues, while Villagomez called for a detailed assessment of government staffing and greater cross-training of employees.

Workforce availability also emerged as a common concern, with all three supporting Delegate Kimberlyn King-Hinds' proposed federal legislation aimed at stabilising the CNMI's foreign labour force, including an extension of the Commonwealth-only Transitional Worker programme.

Deleon Guerrero also stressed the need to make the islands more resilient following repeated destructive typhoons.

"We need to harden our infrastructure," she said. "We cannot continue to be waiting for power and water for 30 days, 60 days, 90 days."

The gubernatorial campaign began taking formal shape last 30 July when Attao and Villagomez filed their petitions with the Commonwealth Election Commission.

Villagomez described the filing as the moment when the campaign became tangible.

"Today's an important day for us because this just brings reality closer to officially getting off to the races," he said.

Attao, meanwhile, urged residents to participate in November.

"Your vote is your voice. We're a voice for all, and together we will make the CNMI stronger and prouder," he said.

The Republican Party followed with a mass filing on 3 August led by Torres and King-Hinds, who is seeking a second term as the CNMI's non-voting delegate to the US House of Representatives.

Torres, who lost the 2022 gubernatorial runoff, has put economic recovery, pensions and government services at the centre of his comeback bid.

"We want to give you opportunity, give you, all the retirees, the protection of your pension, and our goal is to bring back our economy," Torres said.

King-Hinds said she has unfinished business in Washington after winning the delegate seat in 2024.

"There's a lot of work that still needs to happen, and we spend much of this term building foundations, building relationships, with the hopes that we open up more opportunities for our people," she said.

She faces independent and former Northern Marianas College president Dr Galvin Guerrero for the delegate seat, with Attao's independent group endorsing Deleon Guerrero's candidacy.

The third gubernatorial ticket became official on 4 August, when Camacho and Deleon Guerrero filed their petitions.

Camacho filed a day after the death of his father, saying his father had urged him to continue the campaign.

"My father passed away yesterday," Camacho said.

"But one thing he said before he passed, as he looked at me straight in the eye, and he said, 'No matter what happens, you must continue on because this is something important, not just for him, for our family, but it is important for our Commonwealth.'"

Deleon Guerrero said the filing formally marked the next stage of their campaign.

"We are very capable. We have the capacity. We have the network. We can definitely push forward and make it a better life," she said.

Away from the gubernatorial contest, voters will also choose a new attorney-general after incumbent Edward Manibusan decided not to seek reelection following three terms in office.

Michael Evangelista, Robert Glass Jr, and Joaquin DLG Torres are competing for the position.

Evangelista said his campaign is focused on protecting the integrity and independence of the Office of the Attorney-General.

"I'm running because I want to protect the integrity of the office and to preserve and hold the highest standard of integrity for this office," he said.

Glass has similarly emphasised independence and transparency, saying the attorney general's decisions should be based on the law rather than political considerations.

"We're not here to just advance a governor's agenda. We're here to make sure that the governor's agenda is done in accordance with law," he said.

Joaquin DLG Torres, meanwhile, said he wants the attorney general to take a more visible role.

"We need an attorney general who's active, who's in front, who faces the problem," he said.

The Republican Party is also fielding candidates across Senate, House, and mayoral races on Saipan, Tinian, Rota, and the Northern Islands.

Its slate includes Senate candidates Vinnie Sablan and Marco Peter on Saipan, Tito Hocog II on Rota, and incumbent senators Jude Hofschneider and Francisco Cruz on Tinian.

The Democratic Party has fielded a smaller legislative slate, including Labor secretary Leila Staffler for the House in Precinct 5, Gabriel Boki Babauta and incumbent Rep Denita Yangetmai in Precinct 3, and Peter Francis Muña in Precinct 5.

Staffler described the party's approach as "quality versus quantity".

"All of the Democrats that are running in this election are definitely quality Democrats. They are people who have integrity, people who believe in accountability and transparency," she said.

The Democratic slate also includes Ricardo Castro Cruz Jr for Precinct 1, Frances Marie "Kika" Guerrero Sablan for Precinct 3, and incumbent Sen Celina Roberto Babauta, who is seeking reelection to the Senate.

With the filing period over and the major tickets now on the campaign trail, CNMI voters will decide on 3 November who will lead a Commonwealth still confronting economic weakness, workforce uncertainty and recovery from successive destructive typhoons.