Yesterday was Election Day in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The election campaigns have been in full swing since April, and nearly every house has a candidate’s sign in front of it. Not coincidentally, the patronage system is alive and well here, and government jobs are the only real ticket for a local to lead a middle-class lifestyle.
Because everyone knows (or is related to) one or more of the candidates, campaign ads rarely list any policy provisions, and negative ads are unheard of. Just your candidate wearing a Hawaiian shirt and smiling—and sometimes not even listing your candidate‘s surname, just his first name or nickname.
Candidates’ families spent yesterday setting up tables near major intersections, blasting reggae over their truck stereos, and waving at passers-by.