The Congress of Micronesia was a bicameral legislature in

Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands The Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI) was a United Nations trust territory in Micronesia administered by the United States from 1947 to 1994. History Spain initially claimed the islands that later composed the territory of the Trus ...

from 1964 to 1979.

History

The Congress was established on 28 September 1964, when the US Secretary of the Interior

Stewart Udall Stewart Lee Udall (January 31, 1920 – March 20, 2010) was an American politician and later, a federal government official. After serving three terms as a congressman from Arizona, he served as Secretary of the Interior from 1961 to 1969, und ...

issued order no. 2882. It replaced the previous Council of Micronesia, which had been based outside the Trust Territory in

Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...

. The first elections were held in January 1965. The Congress was initially composed of a House of Delegates and General Assembly, which were later renamed the Senate and House of Representatives. The Congress building was burnt down in an arson attack on 20 February 1970.

Composition

The Senate had 12 members, two from each of the six

districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

. The House of Representatives had 21 members, with seats apportioned to each district based on their population – five from Truk, four from the

Marshall Islands The Marshall Islands ( mh, Ṃajeḷ), officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands ( mh, Aolepān Aorōkin Ṃajeḷ),'' () is an independent island country and microstate near the Equator in the Pacific Ocean, slightly west of the Inte ...

and

Ponape Ponape may refer to: * Pohnpei, an island in the Federated States of Micronesia * ''Ponape'' (barque), a German sailing ship {{disambiguation ...

, three from the

Mariana Islands The Mariana Islands (; also the Marianas; in Chamorro: ''Manislan Mariånas'') are a crescent-shaped archipelago comprising the summits of fifteen longitudinally oriented, mostly dormant volcanic mountains in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, betw ...

and

Palau Palau,, officially the Republic of Palau and historically ''Belau'', ''Palaos'' or ''Pelew'', is an island country and microstate in the western Pacific. The nation has approximately 340 islands and connects the western chain of the ...

and two from Yap.Micronesia To Go To Polls
''Pacific Islands Monthly'', November 1964, p13 Elections were held every two years. Senators served four-year terms, with one Senator elected from each district at each election. All members of the House of Representatives were elected at each election.

Presidents of the upper chamber

The upper chamber of Congress of Micronesia was called House of Delegates, and later Senate.

Speakers of the lower chamber

The lower chamber of Congress of Micronesia was called House of Representatives.

Elections

* 1965 Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands parliamentary election * 1966 Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands parliamentary election * 1968 Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands parliamentary election * 1970 Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands parliamentary election * 1972 Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands parliamentary election * 1974 Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands parliamentary election * 1976 Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands parliamentary election

References