Northern Mariana Islands – מילון אנגלי-אנגלי
Northern Mariana Islands
n.
group of volcanic and coral islands in the West Pacific Ocean
Northern Mariana Islands
The
Northern Mariana Islands, officially the
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (
CNMI; ), is one of five inhabited American
insular areas. It is one of two territories with US "
commonwealth" status; the other is
Puerto Rico. It consists of fifteen islands in the northwestern
Pacific Ocean. The CNMI and
Guam together comprise the
Marianas archipelago.
Northern Mariana Islands
Noun
1. a self-governing territory comprising all of the Mariana Islands except Guam
(synonym) Northern Marianas
(hypernym) district, territory, territorial dominion, dominion
(part-holonym) Mariana Islands, Marianas, Ladrone Islands
(part-meronym) Saipan
Northern Mariana Islands
Flag of Northern Mariana Islands
Background
Under US administration as part of the UN Trust Territory of the Pacific, the people of the Northern Mariana Islands decided in the 1970s not to seek independence but instead to forge closer links with the US. Negotiations for territorial status began in 1972. A covenant to establish a commonwealth in political union with the US was approved in 1975. A new government and constitution went into effect in 1978.
Map of Northern Mariana Islands
More about Northern Mariana Islands:
Geography
People
Government
Economy
Communications
Transportation
Military
Transnational Issues
Northern Mariana Islands
Chief of state: President George W. BUSH of the US (since 20 January 2001); Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001)
Head of government: Governor Benigno R. FITIAL (since 9 January 2006); Lieutenant Governor Timothy P. VILLAGOMEZ (since 9 January 2006)
Cabinet: the cabinet consists of the heads of the 10 principal departments under the executive branch who are appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the Senate; other members include Special Assistants to the governor and office heads appointed by and reporting directly to the governor
Elections: under the US Constitution, residents of unincorporated territories, such as the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, do not vote in elections for US president and vice president; however, they may vote in the Democratic and Republican presidential primary elections; governor and lieutenant governor elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms (eligible for a second term); election last held 5 November 2005 (next to be held in November 2009)
Election results: Benigno R. FITIAL elected governor in a four-way race; percent of vote - Benigno R. FITIAL 28.07%, Heinz HOFSCHNEIDER 27.34%, Juan BABAUTA 26.6%, Froilan TENORIO 17.99%
