GOP primary: Who will it be?

The Issue: Voters, Marianas-wide, will be headed to polling places tomorrow to decide the GOP’s standard bearer.

Our View: By now, most voters have made up their minds; go out and exercise your right to vote.

For several months now, the tandems of Pepero-Kiyu and Babauta-Benavente have visited all three inhabited islands seeking voter support to serve as the GOP’s gubernatorial standard bearer.

The long and hard work that have been expended on this goal would finally come to an end when the last ballot is counted tomorrow night. The tandem that succeeds in getting its message across would prevail while the other would have to gracefully concede.

It’s a matter of reassessment, assimilation, family ties, reputation, the question of whether voters are willing to make a change or simply hold on to the status quo. Each tandem would have to ask itself how well it has dealt with these and other pertinent questions.

The one thing that stands out in the duel for the party’s official standard bearer is the strong sense of decorum from both sides in avoiding negative attacks. Except for various occasions when some supporters came close to unleashing their frustrations, overall, it was a good and well fought campaign from village to village, island to island, Marianas-wide.

Indeed, it has been a long and well-fought battle from both sides of the GOP divide. It is no easy feat given that both sides have canvassed villages in all three inhabited islands. But as in any other form of competition, there’s only a single victor and tomorrow’s primary result would render the same chorus, a victor and villain. Shake hands and may the best tandem win. Si Yuus Maase` yan Ghilisow!