Note: I had the honor of working with President Kessai Note as his Personal Adviser from 2000 to 2008. In 2013, we were reunited in Manila, Philippines. In 2015, I traveled to Majuro, Marshall Islands to serve as Administrator of the foundation he established, the Reimanlok Foundation.
The Honorable Kessai H. Note served as President of the Republic of the Marshall Islands from 2000 to 2008. Since 2009, he has continued to serve as Senator in the Nitijela (Parliament) of the Republic of the Marshall Islands.
He began his public service career in 1974 as an agricultural economist with the Trust Territory District Department of Natural Resources. By 1976, he was elected as a delegate to the First Constitutional Convention of the Marshall Islands.
Between 1976 and 1979, Note and other young leaders worked with the late President Amata Kabua to push for the Marshall Islands' independence from the Trust Territory. In 1979, a constitution was ratified, establishing the Marshall Islands as a self-governing nation.
In April 1979, Note was elected to the first Nitijela and appointed as Minister of Resources and Development. During his tenure, he helped establish Air Marshall Islands (AMI), acquiring aircraft from Australia and Germany, and served as Vice Chairman of its board.
He also played a vital role in the negotiation of the "Nauru Agreement," a pivotal multilateral fisheries treaty among Pacific Island nations.
From 1979 to 1987, Note held ministerial roles including Minister of Interior and Minister of Transportation and Communications. He later served as Chairman of the Board of the National Telecommunications Authority, Tobolar Corporation, and Foreign Investment Board.
He was deeply engaged in community service, including leadership of the Marshalls Community Action Agency and the Marshall Islands Sports Council. He founded the Reimanlok Foundation and appointed Prof. Vicente Sinining as its administrator in 2016.
In 1988, he was elected Speaker of the Nitijela, a position he held for twelve years. He presided over the 2nd and 3rd Constitutional Conventions in 1990 and 1995.
In January 2000, he was elected President of the Marshall Islands and re-elected in November 2003 for a second term. In 2020, he was appointed Minister of Labor and Immigration by President David Paul.
As of 2024, President Note continues to serve in Parliament and is recognized as the longest-serving senator in the country’s history.
President Note is married to the former Mary Neimoj Yamamura. They have six children.
