Elections cannot be postponed, said Deleon Guerrero, R-Saipan.
He noted that important initiatives will also be on the November ballot.
Ballots for absentee voters should be mailed 75 days prior to the election, so the election commissions has only less than a month left to send the ballots, Deleon Guerrero said.
The printing of ballots should have started already, he added.
In case of lack of funding, Deleon Guerrero said the only worst-case scenario will be a reduction in the number of polling precincts.
He recalled that in the past, Precinct 1 had four polling precincts — Koblerville, San Vicente, San Antonio and Northern Marianas College.
The number went down to three during the last elections due to budget constraints.
A funding problem is not an excuse to postpone an election, the lawmaker said.
According to Deleon Guerrero, he is confident that the administration is working on the funding needed by the election commission, which is estimated to be over $120,000.
Deleon Guerrero said the commission is also mandated to educate the voters about the initiatives that will be on the ballot.
Sen. Henry H. San Nicolas, Covenant-Tinian, said the November poll is a federal and local election that cannot be postponed.
“If we have to work together to secure funding, we will do that,” he said.
