Surangel Whipps Jr. | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Whipps in 2025 | |
| 10th President of Palau | |
| Assumed office 21 January 2021 | |
| Vice President | Uduch Sengebau Senior Raynold Oilouch |
| Preceded by | Thomas Remengesau Jr. |
| Member of theSenate of Palau | |
| In office 2008–2016 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1968-08-09)9 August 1968 (age 57) |
| Party | Independent |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 4 (3 daughters and 1 son) |
| Parent(s) | Surangel S. Whipps (father) Marilyn C. Whipps (mother) |
| Relatives | Mason Whipps (brother) Thomas Remengesau Jr. (brother-in-law) Thomas Remengesau Sr. (father-in-law; deceased) |
| Education | Andrews University (BS) University of California Los Angeles (MBA) |
Surangel Samuel Whipps Jr. (born 9 August 1968)[2] is a Palauan businessman and politician who has served as thepresident of Palau since 2021.[3] He served assenator from 2008 to 2016.[3] He is from the state ofNgatpang.[1] Whipps assumed office as the President of Palau on 21 January 2021, after winning the2020 Palauan presidential election.[4][5] He won reelection in2024.
Whipps was born inBaltimore,Maryland,[6] toSurangel Whipps Sr. His mother is from Maryland. He is of Palauan and American ancestry.[6]
He has a degree in Business Administration and Economics fromAndrews University and anMBA fromUniversity of California, Los Angeles.[7] In addition, he heads a chain of Palauan supermarkets.[8]
He ran against his brother-in-law, PresidentThomas Remengesau Jr., who was running for re-election, in the2016 Palauan general election.[9] Remengesau received 5,109 votes while Whipps won 4,854 votes.[10]
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Whipps married Valerie Esang Remengesau in 1999; the couple have four children.[11] He is a member of theSeventh-day Adventist Church.[12] In December 2003, following theDePaiva family murders, Whipps accompanied the surviving daughter after the crimes and upon her return to Palau for visit in 2018 and 2022, declaring her and her murdered family a "national family of Palau."[13]
Whipps ran for president in the2020 presidential election and defeated Vice PresidentRaynold Oilouch[3][14] in a campaign in which he stressed tax reforms and the creation of additional sources of revenue.[15] In an interview withThe Guardian, then President-elect Whipps Jr. made the statement that Palau would more strongly oppose the actions of the Chinese government includingillegal fishing and trespassing in Palauan waters as well as vowing to maintain the country's recognition ofTaiwan.[8] In addition, he proposed to distribute theCOVID-19 vaccine amongst Palau's population, with an emphasis on healthcare workers.[16]
During theCOP26 meeting inGlasgow, Whipps said, "We are drowning, and our only hope is the life-ring you are holding", strongly criticizing world powers in his speech.[17] On 28 September 2022, on the occasion of the state funeral forShinzo Abe, Japan's former Prime Minister, in Tokyo, Whipps was one of only seven heads of state who had meetings with the Japanese EmperorNaruhito.[18]
In October 2022, President Whipps visitedTaiwan for the second time in his presidency. He arrived in Taiwan on 5 October and was welcomed by PresidentTsai Ing-wen when he stepped off the plane.
President Whipps serves on the advisory council of the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy atPurdue University, which is dedicated to accelerating the innovation and adoption of trusted technology to advance freedom.[19]
In the2024 Palauan general election, Whipps Jr. was re-elected for a second term. He earned 5,626 votes, defeating former president Thomas Remengesau Jr. who received 4,103.[20]
On July 29, 2024, he delivered the speechUpholding the Common Heritage of Humankind to theInternational Seabed Authority Assembly in Jamaica, arguing againstseabed mining.
My mom is from Maryland, so I was actually born in Baltimore, Maryland, and we actually lived there until I was three years old.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | President of Palau 2021–present | Incumbent |
