How the leaders come to power

The legislature of American Samoa is called the Fono; the lower house is appor tioned by population and elected by univer sal suffrage; the upper house is elected by persons (largely men) holding the traditio nal title of matai.

The governor is elected directly, and although the current governor identifies himself as a national Democrat, as the previous one called himself a national Republican, elections are non-partisan.

Mainland type party-line elections occur in Guam, where all 21 members of the Senate are elected at large; two months before the general election each major party picks up to 21 candidates in pri maries.

Each voter can vote for up to 21 candidates in the primary and in the general. The Governor is elected directly in a partisan election.

The Senate of the Northern Marianas is divided three seats per island; the lower house is apportioned by population, with 13 seats allocated to the more populous Saipan, and one each to Tinian and Rota.

The Governor is elected directly.

The Federated States of Micronesia have one of the more complex systems among those described here. Each of the four states (Kosrae, Pohnpei, Truk and Yap) elect a four-year senator; the president and the vice president are chosen from these four by the fourteen members of the National Congress; then by elections are held to replace the president and the vice president.

The other ten seats are apportioned by population and elected directly for two-year terms. Thus, comparing this system to that of the mainland, a single body, the National Congress, plays the role of the U.S. Senate (equal representation for states), of the U.S.

House of Representatives (representation by population) and of the Electoral College (which formally chooses the U.S. Presi dent).

The Republic of the Marshall Islands follows the British pattern; the lower (and more powerful) house is elected directly, and the members then choose a president who is the head of government.

If the president were to lose the confi dence of the majority a resignation would be expected; there is an informal division between 23 members supporting the gov ernment, the Ailin Kein Ad (Our Islands) party, and ten members backing the opposition, the Ainikien Dri Majol (The Voice of the Marshalls).

The other legislative body Marshallese do not use the concept of an upper and a lower house is the Council of Iroij, which consists of twelve traditional chiefs or their deputies. The Council does not have the power to overrule the Nitijela, and has powers confined to traditional matters, such as titles and land tenure.

In the Republic of Palau the senate is based on population and the House has one representative from each state. The presi dent and the vice president are elected directly and separately.