[1] Incumbent Republican governor Ralph Torres ran for re-election to a second full term in office with territorial senator Vinnie Sablan as his running mate.

On January 12, 2022, the Northern Mariana Islands House of Representatives voted to impeach Torres on charges of theft and corruption.

A two-thirds majority vote in the Northern Mariana Islands Senate was required to remove the governor from office.

However, Torres still faced criminal charges brought against him by Attorney General Edward Manibusan.

[5] On October 22, 2021, Palacios and Apatang announced they were leaving the Republican Party and would run as an independent ticket.