Election Day opened with a Republican gubernatorial pickup in Guam, where Tony Ada and his running mate, E.J. Calvo, erased an early Democratic advantage and finished ahead in the completed unofficial count. Ada-Calvo received 15,945 votes, or 51.45 percent, while Democrats Therese Terlaje and Sabina Perez received 14,925 votes, or 48.15 percent. Write-in candidates collected 124 votes.
The 1,020-vote victory flipped Guam’s governorship after eight years of Democratic control under term-limited Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero. It was not exactly a calm, predictable win. With 21 of 59 precincts reporting, Terlaje-Perez held an 80-vote lead, 5,243 to 5,163. That early edge turned out to be about as durable as a campaign promise made under bright television lights.
As more precincts reported, the Republican ticket moved ahead by nearly 500 votes with 38 precincts counted. The advantage then widened to 1,020 votes in the completed unofficial tally. Terlaje told supporters that she had called Ada to concede on behalf of the Democratic ticket, while the mood at Republican headquarters shifted from tense overnight monitoring to celebration.
Guam’s result quickly landed on the national Election Day scoreboard, but the island did not deliver a straight-ticket sweep. Democrat Alicia Limtiaco led Republican incumbent James Moylan in the race for Guam’s non-voting delegate to the U.S. House, 15,645 to 14,983. Limtiaco’s total represented 51.0 percent, compared with 48.8 percent for Moylan, while 49 votes went to write-in candidates.
Veteran congressional reporter John Bresnahan summed up the familiar Election Day fascination with Guam by posting the phrase, “As goes Guam ……”. The territory votes well ahead of the mainland, which makes its returns an early political talking point. Still, Guam’s results should not be treated as a scientific forecast for the rest of the country. The island’s voters made their own choices, and those choices included a Republican governor alongside Democratic leads in other major contests.
The split continued in the attorney general’s race, where Phillip Tydingco remained ahead of incumbent Douglas Moylan. Pacific Daily News also reported that Republicans occupied eight of the top 15 positions in Guam’s legislative count after Democrats had held the early advantage. Republican Sabrina Salas Matanane ranked third, followed by Republicans Jesse Lujan and Chris Duenas, with additional GOP candidates appearing throughout the top 15.
That legislative reversal added another layer to the night. Republicans captured the biggest partisan prize, the governorship, while Democrats remained competitive elsewhere on the ballot. Guam therefore delivered a Republican change at the top without pretending every race had the same result. Voters split their support, and the completed unofficial numbers gave Ada and Calvo the first gubernatorial flip of Election Day.
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