Joseph John "Joe" Urusemal (born March 19, 1952) is a Micronesian

political figure A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

who served as the sixth

President of the Federated States of Micronesia The president of the Federated States of Micronesia is the head of state and government of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). The FSM president, by virtue of his or her office, is the head of the FSM Cabinet and is in charge of the admin ...

from 2003 until 2007. Urusemal is married to former

First Lady First lady is an unofficial title usually used for the wife, and occasionally used for the daughter or other female relative, of a non-monarchical A monarchy is a form of government in which a person, the monarch, is head of state fo ...

Olania Latileilam, who is from

Satawal Satawal is a solitary coral atoll of one island with about 500 people on just over 1 km2 located in the Caroline Islands in the Pacific Ocean. It forms a legislative district in Yap State in the Federated States of Micronesia. Satawal is th ...

. The couple have four children: B.J., Tarsis, Craig and Elenita.

Early life

Urusemal was born on the island of

Woleai Woleai, also known as Oleai, is a coral atoll of twenty-two islands in the western Caroline Islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district in the Yap State in the Federated States of Micronesia and is located approximately west-n ...

in the

State of Yap Yap State, also known in the Yapese language as Nam nu Wa'ab (lit. "Island of Yap") or simply as Wa'ab, is one of the four states of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). The other states are Kosrae State, Pohnpei State, and Chuuk State. Co ...

. He attended secondary school on the island of Chuuk (then called Truk) at

Xavier High School A multitude of schools and universities have been named after St. Francis Xavier, a Spanish Roman Catholic saint and co-founder of the Society of Jesus. This page lists notable educational institutions named after St. Xavier, arranged by country a ...

, a

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

institution. He would graduate from Xavier in 1976. Urusemal went on to attend and graduate from

Rockhurst University Rockhurst University is a private Jesuit university in Kansas City, Missouri. Founded in 1910 as Rockhurst College, Rockhurst University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. It enrolled 2,980 students in 2019. History In 1909, Fr. ...

(then called Rockhurst College) in

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...

, Missouri, United States. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in

Administration of Justice The administration of justice is the process by which the legal system of a government is executed. The presumed goal of such an administration is to provide justice for all those accessing the legal system. The phrase is also commonly used to ...

from Rockhurst, a Roman Catholic Jesuit university. Upon graduation, Urusemal accepted a position with the

Jackson County, Missouri Jackson County is located in the western portion of the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2020 census, the population was 717,204. making it the second-most populous county in the state (after St. Louis County). Although Independence retains ...

, government, including the county Department of Corrections until he returned to Micronesia in 1982. Following his return to Micronesia, Urusemal became a teacher and guidance counselor for the Outer Islands High School on his native Yap.

Political career

Urusemal was elected to four-year term in the Fifth

Congress of the Federated States of Micronesia The Congress of the Federated States of Micronesia has 14 non-partisan members: ten members elected for a two-year term in ten single-seat constituencies and four members elected for a four-year term, one from each state at-large. Speakers of th ...

in 1987. He was elected as Yap's at-large representative. Urusemal rose to leadership positions during his parliamentary career. He served as

Floor Leader In politics, floor leaders, also known as a caucus leader, are leaders of their respective political party in a body of a legislature. Philippines In the Philippines each body of the bicameral Congress has a majority floor leader and a minor ...

for twelve years during the Seventh until the Twelfth FSM congresses. During his political career representing Yap, Urusemal served on several congressional committees including Health, Education and Social Affairs and the Judiciary and Governmental Operations committees. The president and vice president of the Federated States of Micronesia are elected directly by Congress and must be a duly elected member at the time of election. Due to the defeat of the then-incumbent president, Leo Falcam, in the previous elections, Falcam was unable to stand for re-election. On May 11, 2003, Congress elected Urusemal as President and he took office immediately. On May 11, 2007, the 15th Congress convened. A new

presidential election A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President. Elections by country Albania The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public. Chile The pre ...

was held and

Manny Mori Emanuel "Manny" Mori (born December 25, 1949) is a Micronesian politician who served as President of the Federated States of Micronesia from 11 May 2007 to 11 May 2015. Early life Mori was born on the island of Fefan and attended and graduated fr ...

was elected president. He likewise took office immediately.

External links

Official Biography of Joseph J. UrusemalPacific Magazine: Yap Gets FSM Presidency:Urusemal Was A Surprise To SomePacific Magazine: FSM: Yap leader is new FSM presidentChuuk's Manny Mori New FSM President
{{DEFAULTSORT:Urusemal, Joseph 1952 births Living people People from Yap State Presidents of the Federated States of Micronesia Members of the Congress of the Federated States of Micronesia Rockhurst University alumni Federated States of Micronesia Roman Catholics Federated States of Micronesia expatriates in the United States