By Bryan Manabat
Saipan--Republican Kimberlyn King-Hinds won the five-way race for the CNMI delegate seat at Tuesday's midterm elections.
She received 4,931 votes, beating Edwin Propst, (4,067), John Oliver Gonzales (2,282), James Michael Rahphand (665) and Liana Hofschneider (280).
King-Hinds will succeed Rep. Gregorio Sablan, who decided not to seek another term after representing the CNMI as a nonvoting delegate for 15 years.
She campaigned for stronger tourism and diversifying the economy.
Propst is a Democrat. Gonzales, Rayphand and Hofschneider ran as Independents.
Propst, Gonzales and Rayphand expressed their appreciation to their supporters and congratulated the delegate-elect.
King-Hinds said her immediate priorities are focused on reviving the CNMI economy, restoring the tourism industry, securing the labor force and addressing the CW situation which will end in 2029.
"I will be working on the resumption of Annex VI," she said, referring to a halted federal policy that exempted the CNMI from the cap on round-trip flights between the U.S. and China.
"We have to fix and remove the barriers right now that's stopping our tourism industry from fully thriving and that's that's the focus, and I'm not waiting until I get sworn in to start working on that," King-Hinds said.
“ I campaigned on that platform, and I intend to deliver, because it is critical, not just for the tourism industry, but for every single person who calls these islands home," she said.
"Because that is where we get our money the fastest way and while as we work on that, we need to start talking about how to actually diversify the economy,” she said.
King-Hinds said addressing the challenges facing the CNMI requires collaboration with the community.
"The job of the delegate is to be your voice and I cannot do it alone I need everybody's help. I need everybody to level up to come and have a seat at the table to have these conversations," she said.
"I need the media as well to help in disseminating information and to get the word what it is that we're trying to do and to rally the community to be able to focus on priorities so that we can do it," she added.
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