Benigno Fitial
| Benigno Fitial | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| 7th Governor of the Northern Mariana Islands | |
|
In office January 9, 2006 – February 20, 2013 |
|
| Lieutenant |
Timothy Villagomez Eloy Inos |
| Preceded by | Juan Babauta |
| Succeeded by | Eloy Inos |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Benigno Repeki Fitial November 27, 1945 Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands, U.S. |
| Political party |
Republican (Before 2001; 2011–present) Covenant (2001–2011) |
| Spouse(s) | Josie Padiermos |
| Alma mater | University of Guam (BBA) |
Benigno Repeki Fitial (born November 27, 1945) was the seventh governor of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Fitial was elected on November 6, 2005 and assumed office on January 9, 2006 and was re-elected to a second five-year term in 2009. He was impeached by the CNMI House of Representatives on February 11, 2013, and was scheduled to face trial before the CNMI Senate to determine if he should be removed from office. He resigned on February 20, 2013.
Fitial founded the Covenant Party in 2001 after leaving the Republican Party. He rejoined the Republican Party on January 5, 2011, announcing that his goal will be to merge the Covenant Party back into the Republican Party.
Fitial was the first governor in any US territory or commonwealth to be impeached and only the 13th governor in the history of the United States. On February 11 & 12, 2013 the CNMI House of Representatives voted to impeach Fitial on 18 different charges contained in Articles of Impeachment. The charges include neglect of duties, commission of felonies and abuse of power.
Rather than facing a trial before the CNMI Senate which was set for March 7, 2013, Benigno Repeki Fitial became the first governor in CNMI history to resign from office on February 20, 2013. In his resignation letter he cited "personal health" reasons and the "best interests of the Commonwealth".
Born on November 27, 1945, and raised in a Satawalese family, Fitial graduated with honors from Saipan's Mt. Carmel High School in 1964. He obtained a Bachelor of Business Administration with an emphasis on business management from the University of Guam. He is recognized as a University of Guam Distinguished Alumni.
Fitial is the first elected governor of Carolinian descent in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Carolinians are indigenous to the Caroline Islands, and the ancestors of most Carolinians now living in the northern Mariana Islands immigrated there in the early 19th century, from the Yap and Chuuk island groups of what is now the Federated States of Micronesia. The Chamorro are the indigenous inhabitants of the Marianas, and past winners of elections in the CNMI had been Chamorro.
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