Mendiola urges fellow senators to oppose Jorgensen’s nomination
Citing a petition with 90 signatures and five letters from Rota residents who strongly oppose the appointment of lawyer Bruce Lee Jorgensen to serve as a member of the Commonwealth Ports Authority board representing Rota, Sen. Dennis James C. Mendiola (R-Rota) has requested the Senate Executive Appointments and Government Investigations Committee to thoroughly examine the concerns raised in the petition.
When asked about it yesterday, Jorgensen declined to comment, saying he has not seen Mendiola’s letter yet.
At the Senate EAGI Committee confirmation hearing last July 26, Jorgensen, however, stated that he has been back in the CNMI for over 14 months now and that he voted in the last 2022 election on Rota. He said he first voted on Rota in 1986.
Jorgensen said he plans to retire on Rota and that his son is going to build him a house there.
In his letter to EAGI Committee chair Sen. Celina R. Babauta (D-Saipan) last July 21, Mendiola enclosed supporting documents raised by the petitioners, along with additional inquiries he made with the Commonwealth Election Commission based on the concerns.
“Prioritizing the well-being and goals of the community of Rota is of the utmost importance when it comes to the governance of the Commonwealth Ports Authority,” the senator told Babauta.
Babauta received Mendiola’s letter last July 26, or on the day of the hearing. The Office of the Senate clerk received the letter Thursday last week.
Mendiola said that, as a representative of the people of Rota, he urges Gov. Arnold I. Palacios and Lt. Gov. David M. Apatang to reconsider Jorgensen’s nomination.
“It is of utmost importance that the candidate chosen aligns with the best interests of the Rota community,” he said.
Mendiola urged his fellow senators to oppose the nomination and letting Palacios and Apatang search for a “highly invested and culturally acquainted” candidate from Rota.
He pointed out that the signatories in the petition that opposes Jorgensen’s nomination have expressed legitimate concerns, providing justifiable grounds for the Senate to reconsider and withhold Jorgensen’s confirmation as a member of the CPA board.
Mendiola said the petitioners explicitly convey their strong belief that “Jorgensen’s nomination is invalid and an affront to the people of Rota.”
The petition highlights three primary reasons—Jorgensen’s lack of active community participation, his questionable residence, and the importance of local representation on the CPA board.
The senator said that, upon reviewing the voting records obtained from the Commonwealth Election Commission, he made a “startling discovery” about Jorgensen. He noted that Jorgensen’s most recent attempt to register to vote dates back to 2003, and even then, his registration faced challenges due to residency issues.
Interestingly, Mendiola said, this wasn’t an isolated incident, as Jorgensen had encountered similar challenges regarding residency requirements in previous elections as well.
The senator said CEC records indicate that during the late ’80s and throughout the ’90s, the lawyer consistently participated in the CNMI election process by diligently registering to vote. However, a noticeable gap in Jorgensen’s voter registration history emerges in 2003 and persists until 2022. Mendiola said the most recent registry from 2022 reveals that Jorgensen once again registered to vote at the very last minute—just before the registry closed.
The senator noted that the registered voter roster that he (Mendiola) obtained only extends until August 2022.
To clarify the matter, Mendiola said, he reached out to the CEC officials responsible for registering residences, and they confirmed that Jorgensen’s registration was indeed submitted at the 11th hour.
“As a result, the roster I possess does not include his information,” the senator pointed out.
This situation, Mendiola said, raises concerns about Jorgensen’s commitment to the Rota municipality.
He said the inconsistency in his voter registration history suggests a lack of attentiveness toward local affairs and, more significantly, a lack of confidence in the people of Rota.
Mendiola said it is worth mentioning that Jorgensen also participated in the transition committee of the new administration, which, according to him, raises questions about potential ulterior motives behind Jorgensen’s actions.
At the EAGI Committee’s confirmation hearing last July 26, many people wrote letters of support while some appeared before the committee to support the appointment of Jorgensen, but CPA director Pete P. Reyes strongly opposed, calling Jorgensen an opportunist and who is not even a resident of Rota and has a questionable character.
Except for Jorgensen, all the appointees who appeared before the July 26 EAGI confirmation hearing were confirmed by the full Senate.
Bruce Lee Jorgensen
Dennis James Mendiola
