2025 Special Election: Yap At-Large Senate Seat

Overview

Former President and longtime Senator Joseph J. Urusemal passed away on September 16, 2025, creating a vacancy in Yap State’s at-large seat in the FSM Congress. The National Election Commission scheduled a special election for Wednesday, November 12, 2025. The seat has traditionally been held by Outer Islanders and is one of the four at-large positions from which the FSM President is chosen.

Candidates

Andrew Yatilman

First to file was Andrew R. Yatilman of Satawal, a cabinet-level secretary in the FSM government and former Lieutenant Governor of Yap State. He has decades of state and national experience and is one of the most senior bureaucrats in Micronesia. His long service in climate and emergency management has built regional connections, but two decades in the national capital may distance him from voters one thousand miles to the west. His years in Palikir coincide with Yap State’s growing frustration toward the national government, and escalating engagement with China, though even critics of overreach by the federal government may still seek representation able to work effectively within that national government, rather than against it.

Faustino Yangmog

Next to declare was Faustino Yangmog of Ulithi, longtime General Manager of the Yap State Public Service Corporation and Micronesia’s most accomplished utility executive. Under his leadership, YSPSC achieved financial independence, low power rates, and broad electrification. His later role as chair of Vital Energy expanded his experience in public enterprise. The question for voters is whether technical management translates into political representation. If voters favor competence over factional loyalty, Yangmog can emerge as a unifying choice. His role, and accomplishments at the leader of YSPSC may also position him above the other Outer Island candidates to earn votes from Yapese who aren't supportive of John Mafel or simply don't want to break the tradition of Outer Islanders holding the seat.

Jesse J. Salalu

The third to announce was Jesse J. Salalu of Fais, a former governor and educator who previously served as Yap’s lieutenant governor. He became the first Outer Islander to hold the governorship after the 2021 removal of Governor Henry Falan, a Yapese. That decision remains controversial, with some viewing it as the point when the long-standing Yap–Outer Island balance was broken. His tenure as governor drew criticism for weak performance and management issues, and his loss in the 2022 gubernatorial election revealed limited public support. While his Outer Islander background still gives him standing for the at-large seat, some voters associate him with the political disruptions that deepened divisions between the islands, and others may fault him for the entrance of a Yapese candidate.

John Mafel

Last to announce was John Mafel of Rull, a legislator and traditional chief on the Council of Pilung. He is the only candidate from Yap Proper and combines legislative authority with customary status. Mafel advocates greater Yap State autonomy and resistance to centralization in Palikir. A contenious prior conviction, later pardoned, had fueled questions about eligibility and ethics when elected to the State Legislature. His run for a Senate seat long held by Outer Islanders could divide Yapese voters, but should Outer Island support splinter owing to three candidates competing for that bloc, Mafel could prevail statewide by securing even just a majority of Yapese.

Issues and Variables

The first factor is the traditional division of representation between Yap Proper and the Outer Islands. For decades, the state’s two congressional seats have been informally divided—one for each region. A Yap Proper candidate entering the at-large race tests whether voters still follow that convention. From the Yapese perspective, the “break” may have already occurred when Jesse J. Salalu became governor in 2021.

A second factor is vote distribution among the Outer Islands. They comprise about 59 percent of the electorate, but their vote is split among three candidates. If Outer Islanders divide their support, a strong showing from Yap could dominate statewide. Coordination among Outer Island leaders or backing from figures associated with the late Joseph J. Urusemal could determine whether the vote consolidates.

A third consideration is the presidential rotation. The FSM president is chosen from the four at-large senators. A longstanding understanding that the presidency rotates among the states has lapsed, with Yap State and Kosrae State passed over in recent years. The winner of this race will join the small pool eligible for the presidency, giving the contest national significance.

Another issue is Yap State’s relationship with the national government. Candidates tied to national government growth may be viewed differently depending on voter attitudes toward Palikir. Some emphasize Yap State autonomy; others value access to expanded federal programs, even if these erode the longstanding balance of federalism within the FSM. Many voters skeptical of national influence still tend to prefer candidates able to work effectively within that system. Historically, attitudes toward the national government roughly overlapped the Yap / Outer Island bloc lines, but increasing migration of Outer Islanders into Yap Proper may have lessened this distinction.

A recent factor that deepens frustration with national government -even among Outer Islanders- has been its role in limiting direct formal engagement between the US and Yap State amidst expansion of US presence on Yap. Caustic disputes over the federal/state sharing of revenues also continue to stir resentment.

Election Timeline

Sept. 22 – Oct. 7: Absentee ballot requests by mail

Oct. 2: Nomination petition deadline

Oct. 12: Final day for voter registration and voter ID

Oct. 12 – Nov. 10: Absentee voting for travelers

Nov. 1: Last day to request voting at the Special Polling Place

Nov. 4: Deadline to apply to “Vote at Another Polling Place” (VAAPP)

Nov. 12: Election

Election Results

Overview

Andrew Yatilman won 62.9% of votes cast. Jesse Mafel received 18.8%, with Salalu and Yangmog at 11.0% and 7.3%. The result indicated a clear regional divide: Outer Islanders cast most ballots statewide and voted heavily for Yatilman, while Yap Proper voters favored Mafel. However, as best evidenced by the Eastern Outer Island kinship networks, particularly around Woleai, backing Yatilman at 96–99%, it was long-standing familial/regional blocs that shaped the election outcome.

Outer Islands Vote

The Woleai–Ifalik–Faraulep–Eauripik bloc and the Lamotrek–Elato–Satawal bloc voted almost unanimously for Yatilman—typically above 97%—and supplied well over half of his total votes. The Ulithi–Fais bloc split among its own candidates: Salalu (Fais) at 43.8%, Yatilman at 38.9%, and Yangmog (Ulithi) at 16.2%. This expected home-bloc division had little effect given the bloc’s smaller size.

Yap Proper

On Yap Proper, Mafel won 53.9%, carrying nearly all major municipalities. His strongest results came in the Banpilung-aligned and high-nobility areas—Rull, Gilman, and Dalipebinaw—where he reached 60–80%. The Banpagael paramount municipalities—especially Tomil and parts of Gagil—showed more competition, while the mediator municipalities—Weloy, Fanif, and Colonia—were mixed, giving Yatilman 42.5% and Mafel 41.7%. Simply, , John did very well in Rull, Gilman, and Dalipebinaw’s higher-rank villages, but he struggled in the Tomil–Gagil area and in the western municipalities, where votes were more divided.

Statistical Findings

Box-by-box analysis indicates roughly 80–90 percent of all votes in the 2025 special election can be explained simply by a voter’s home island or municipality and its associated regional, kinship, and rank-based alliances, with very little voting occurring outside those traditional blocs. About 71 percent of all votes in the election followed the simple home-region pattern, even before adding the finer effects of traditional multi-island groupings, alliances between islands and municipalities, caste, and class.

Salalu and Yangmog split the Ulithi–Fais vote; Salalu’s support stayed local, while Yangmog received small, scattered votes elsewhere, likely reflecting his issue-focused campaign and outsider status. But this was the exception that proved the rule. Yatilman’s totals were overwhelmingly drawn from the major eastern kinship blocs, which produced the most lopsided results in the election, often above 97 percent. Mafel’s support on Yap Proper showed an equally clear pattern, clustering in high-rank and Banpilung-aligned municipalities—Rull, Gilman, and Dalipebinaw—where he recorded 60–80 percent at the polling-place level.

Conclusions

The election reaffirmed the long-standing pattern of one congressional seat aligning with Yap Proper and one with the Outer Islands. The Outer Islands did not act strategically; in sum they voted for the only candidate from the largest kinship bloc, while Ulithi–Fais divided between its two native sons. Yap Proper variation reflects nuances within its municipal, caste, and alliance structure, but within the same framework of municipal and kinship blocs.

FSM presidential rotation did not shape voting. Outer Islanders often look to the national government as a counterweight to Yap Proper’s authority and as a source of major projects, while Yap Proper municipalities follow rank-linked patterns. The new Woleai Airport runway, begun in 2025 under an FSM–China agreement, illustrates this dynamic: voters in central and eastern Outer Islands could associate Yatilman’s national role with the project, but kinship alignment remained the main driver of support, and larger implications of the project for the State of Yap and the FSM as a nation were not understood or seen relevant.