David Mundo Apatang (born July 10, 1948) is a Northern Mariana Islander politician who is serving as the 13th

lieutenant governor of the Northern Mariana Islands The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands has a self-governing government consisting of a locally elected governor, lieutenant governor and the Northern Mariana Islands Commonwealth Legislature. Incumbent Governor Eloy S. Inos died on ...

since 2023. He previously served as the mayor of

Saipan Saipan ( ch, Sa’ipan, cal, Seipél, formerly in es, Saipán, and in ja, 彩帆島, Saipan-tō) is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), commonwealth of the United States in the western Pa ...

from January 12, 2015 to January 8, 2023. As a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

, Apatang formerly served in the

Northern Mariana Islands House of Representatives Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a r ...

. Apatang was elected lieutenant governor of the Northern Mariana Islands in the 2022 election on an independent ticket headed by

Arnold Palacios Arnold Indalecio Palacios is a Northern Marianan politician currently serving as the 12th lieutenant governor of the Northern Mariana Islands since January 14, 2019. He previously represented Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands Senate. Formerly ...

Education

While in the Army, Apatang earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in speech and communications from

San Francisco State University San Francisco State University (commonly referred to as San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a public research university in San Francisco. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers 118 different b ...

Career

Military service

Apatang served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

from 1967 to 1987. A

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

veteran, Apatang was stationed at various times in

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

; the

Panama Canal Zone The Panama Canal Zone ( es, Zona del Canal de Panamá), also simply known as the Canal Zone, was an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the Isthmus of Panama, that existed from 1903 to 1979. It was located within the terr ...

; Würzburg, Germany; Fort Lewis in

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

;

Fort Benjamin Harrison Fort Benjamin Harrison was a U.S. Army post located in suburban Lawrence Township, Marion County, Indiana, northeast of Indianapolis, between 1906 and 1991. It is named for the 23rd United States president, Benjamin Harrison. History In 1901, ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

; and Fort Jackson in

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

. He ended his career at Fort Jackson and served on its courts-martial council. He retired with the rank of fiirst sergeant in 1987. Following his military service, Apatang served in local government. He served seven consecutive terms in the

Commonwealth Legislature

Atapang was elected to the

in the 1995 general election. He was the second highest vote-getter in Saipan's Precinct 1. Apatang ran for the Senate in 2001 on behalf of the Covenant Party in the Northern Mariana Islands Senate's 3rd district. In the 2005 gubernatorial election, Apatang ran for

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

as the running mate of

Heinz Hofschneider Heinz Sablan Hofschneider (born July 1, 1957) is a politician from the Northern Mariana Islands. Hofschneider served as the Speaker of the Northern Mariana Islands House of Representatives from 2002 to 2004 and is a four-time candidate for Governor ...

. While both Hofschneider and Apatang were Republicans, they ran as independents. In a four-way race, the HofschneiderApatang ticket lost to

Benigno Fitial Benigno Repeki Fitial (born November 27, 1945) is a Northern Marianan politician who served was the seventh governor of the Northern Mariana Islands. The second longest-serving governor in CNMI history, Fitial was elected on November 6, 2005, assu ...

and

Timothy Villagomez Timothy Pangelinan Villagomez (born September 10, 1962, Saipan) is a Northern Marianan politician who served as the seventh lieutenant governor of the Northern Mariana Islands from January 9, 2006 until his resignation on April 24, 2009, under Gov ...

of the Covenant Party by a single point.

Mayor of Saipan

Shortly after the death of Donald Flores, the mayor of Saipan, Apatang announced his candidacy for the position. Apatang, running as an independent, defeated Republican candidate Jose Alguto Reyes and Democratic candidate Antonio Pinaula Mareham in the 2014 general election. Apatang succeeded Marian Tudela, the acting Mayor appointed after Flores's death. He is currently serving his second term which ends January 2023. His wife, Antonia Pangelinan Mafnas, died in

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

on December 14, 2016. He was sworn in on January 12, 2015. In 2021, the House passed a resolution to honor Apatang's 50 years of service to the people of the CNMI.

2022 lieutenant gubernatorial election

Apatang ran as a candidate for

Lieutenant Governor of the Northern Mariana Islands The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands has a self-governing government consisting of a locally elected governor, lieutenant governor and the Northern Mariana Islands Commonwealth Legislature. Incumbent Governor Eloy S. Inos died on ...

in the 2022 election, running on an independent ticket headed by then incumbent lieutenant governor

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Apatang, David 1948 births Lieutenant Governors of the Northern Mariana Islands Living people Mayors of Saipan Republican Party (Northern Mariana Islands) politicians