Ralph Deleon Guerrero Torres (born August 6, 1979) is a Northern Marianan politician currently serving as the ninth

governor of the Northern Mariana Islands The following is a list of persons who served as governor of Northern Mariana Islands. The term of office is 4 years. The longest-serving governors in CNMI history are Pedro Tenorio, who served 12 years in office from 1982 to 1990 and from 1998 ...

since December 29, 2015. He is 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 ...

from

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 ...

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI; ch, Sankattan Siha Na Islas Mariånas; cal, Commonwealth Téél Falúw kka Efáng llól Marianas), is an unincorporated territory and commonwea ...

(CNMI). The third longest-serving governor in CNMI history, Torres took office upon the death of Governor

Eloy Inos Eulogio "Eloy" Songao Inos (September 26, 1949 – December 28, 2015) was a Northern Marianan politician who served as the eighth governor of the Northern Mariana Islands from 2013 to 2015. Inos, a member of the Republican Party, also served as t ...

on December 29, 2015 before being reelected as governor in his own right in

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

. He previously served as the tenth

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 ...

, having been elected to that post in

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

. At 43, he is the youngest incumbent governor in the United States.

Early life and education

Torres was born on August 6, 1979 to a

Chamorro Chamorro may refer to: * Chamorro people, the indigenous people of the Mariana Islands in the Western Pacific * Chamorro language, an Austronesian language indigenous to The Marianas * Chamorro Time Zone, the time zone of Guam and the Northern Mar ...

family in

Garapan Garapan ( Old Japanese name: 柄帆町, ''Garapan-chō'') is the largest village and the center of the tourism industry on the island of Saipan, which is a part of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Garapan, as ...

, then part of the

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 ...

. Torres' father was a government field officer and Commonwealth Utilities Corporation (CUC) dispatcher, while his mother was a teacher at William S. Reyes Elementary School. Growing up, Torres lived with his parents and five siblings in a one-story house in

Koblerville Koblerville is a settlement (sometimes termed a village or district) on the island of Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI; ch, Sankattan Si ...

built by the family. Torres' family would later move to

Boise, Idaho Boise (, , ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho and is the county seat of Ada County. On the Boise River in southwestern Idaho, it is east of the Oregon border and north of the Nevada border. The downtown are ...

, where he would attend

Boise High School Boise High School is a public secondary school in Boise, Idaho, one of five traditional high schools within the city limits, four of which are in the Boise School District. A three-year comprehensive high school, Boise High is located on the outly ...

, graduating in 1996. He received a B.S. in political science from

Boise State University Boise State University (BSU) is a public research university in Boise, Idaho. Founded in 1932 by the Episcopal Church, it became an independent junior college in 1934 and has been awarding baccalaureate and master's degrees It became a publ ...

in 2001. In 2004, he began to work with his brothers at Torres Brothers, Attorneys at Law.

Early political career

Commonwealth Legislature

In 2008, Torres won election to 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 ...

. In 2010, he won election to the

Northern Mariana Islands Senate The Northern Mariana Islands Senate is the upper house of the Northern Mariana Islands Commonwealth Legislature. The Senate consists of nine senators representing three senatorial districts (Saipan & the Northern Islands, Tinian & Aguijan, and ...

, acting in a variety of roles. From 2010 to 2015 he was chairman of the Health & Welfare Committee. In February 2013, he became the president of the Senate.

Lieutenant Governorship

In the 2014 gubernatorial election, Torres was elected lieutenant governor on the Republican Party ticket headed by Eloy Songao Inos, and was sworn in on January 12, 2015.

Governorship

Tenure and elections

Upon the death of incumbent governor Eloy Inos, Torres became the

Governor of the Northern Mariana Islands The following is a list of persons who served as governor of Northern Mariana Islands. The term of office is 4 years. The longest-serving governors in CNMI history are Pedro Tenorio, who served 12 years in office from 1982 to 1990 and from 1998 ...

on December 29, 2015. In accordance with the

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When ...

, the Senate president,

Victor Hocog Victor Borja Hocog (born September 11, 1953)Covenant domi ...

, became lieutenant governor. In the 2018 gubernatorial election, Torres and his running mate

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 ...

won a full term, defeating former governor

Juan Babauta Juan Nekai Babauta (born September 7, 1953) is a Northern Mariana Islander politician who served as the sixth governor of the Northern Mariana Islands from January 14, 2002 to January 9, 2006. Biography Early life and education Juan Babauta was ...

and Rita Sablan ticket. As Governor, Torres approved a bill, public law 19-42, that adds a $1,000

excise tax file:Lincoln Beer Stamp 1871.JPG, upright=1.2, 1871 U.S. Revenue stamp for 1/6 barrel of beer. Brewers would receive the stamp sheets, cut them into individual stamps, cancel them, and paste them over the Bunghole, bung of the beer barrel so when ...

on pistol purchases, this is the highest tax on pistols sales in the US. However, this excessive tax was later ruled as unconstitutional according to the United States Constitution and overturned by the

United States District Court The United States district courts are the trial courts of the United States federal judiciary, U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each United States federal judicial district, federal judicial district, which each cover o ...

. On September 21, 2018, Torres signed into law the Taulamwaar Sensible CNMI Cannabis Act, stating: "Today, our people made history. We took a stand to legalize marijuana in the CNMI for recreational, medical, and commercial use." Torres has announced his intention to run for reelection in the 2022 gubernatorial election with territorial senator Vinnie Sablan as his running-mate.

Controversies

Torres and his wife, First Lady Diann Torres, were criticized for costing the government $24,297 on a trip to

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...

. The trip, conducted from June 23 to July 2, 2017, involved stops in both

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

and

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...

. In February 2018, ''

Bloomberg Businessweek ''Bloomberg Businessweek'', previously known as ''BusinessWeek'', is an American weekly business magazine published fifty times a year. Since 2009, the magazine is owned by New York City-based Bloomberg L.P. The magazine debuted in New York City ...

'' reported that Torres and his family have received millions of dollars in payments from

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

-based

Imperial Pacific Imperial Pacific International Holdings Limited ( is a Chinese investment holding company. It was founded with headquarters in Hong Kong and originally named First Natural Foods Holdings until it was renamed in May 2014. It is majority owned by ...

casino.

On November 7, 2019, the

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...

executed a search and seizure warrant to raid Torres' office, home, and car as well as his brothers' law firm and various other businesses across Saipan for evidence of wire fraud, schemes to defraud, conspiracy, money laundering, and illegal campaign contributions. In November 2019 the

called for the

impeachment Impeachment is the process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In ...

of Torres amid an ongoing investigation by the

into his businesses. Torres faced further impeachment backlash with growing evidence of the misuse of local funds that violated CNMI procurement laws. As of 12 January 2022, Ralph Torres is the second governor to have been impeached in the CNMI's history. In May, 2022 Torres was acquitted of all charges by the Senate in his

impeachment trial An impeachment trial is a trial that functions as a component of an impeachment. Several governments utilize impeachment trials as a part of their processes for impeachment, but differ as to when in the impeachment process trials take place and how ...

National politics

On March 11, 2016, Torres endorsed frontrunner

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

in the 2016 Republican presidential primary. Torres reiterated his support for Trump in the

general election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

following the Access Hollywood controversy. Following the victory of Democrat Joe Biden in the

2020 presidential election This national electoral calendar for 2020 lists the national/federal elections held in 2020 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *5 January: **C ...

, Torres congratulated the president-elect, while also praising Trump for his "commitment and support for the people of the Northern Mariana Islands". He added that the outgoing President "delivered time and time again for our people" through measures such as NMI U.S. Workforce Act of 2018, and praised Trump's response to the Super Typhoon Yutu.

Personal life

Torres has six children with his wife, the former Diann Mendiola Tudela: Ralph Anthony, Vaniqa Marie, Deon Titus, Tristan Dane, Divannie and Ryan. Torres is of

ancestry.

References

External links

* , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Torres, Ralph 1979 births 21st-century American politicians Boise State University alumni Chamorro people Governors of the Northern Mariana Islands Impeached United States officials Lieutenant Governors of the Northern Mariana Islands Living people Northern Mariana Islands politicians People from Saipan Presidents of the Northern Mariana Islands Senate Republican Party (Northern Mariana Islands) politicians Republican Party governors of the Northern Mariana Islands