“That’s the position we have always supported,” said Board of Education member Galvin S. Deleon Guerrero, former Gov. Juan N. Babauta’s running mate.
Speaker Arnold I. Palacios, in a separate interview, said an open primary “is the best way for the GOP.”
“We had it in the past and it had worked for the party,” said the running mate of Rep. Heinz S. Hofschneider.
There have been rumors that non-Republicans might participate and help elect the “weaker” team, but Palacios said “that was also the case in the past.”
“But in the end the open primary allowed the party to choose the best ticket that had the people’s support,” he added.
“Our camp supports an open primary; that’s for sure.”
From 1977 to 2001, the GOP chose its gubernatorial ticket through an open primary.
In 2005, however, the party decided not to hold a primary. This resulted in a split and the GOP’s worst election defeat in CNMI history.
