Native American Females Make Election Gains

A third-grade field trip to the Navajo Nation Council sparked Crystalyne Curley’s political ambition upon witnessing a fiery debate between two tribal lawmakers. On Election Day, Curley surpassed her childhood dream breaking a barrier she never imagined. She was elected the first female president of the Navajo Nation. The Seneca Nation of New York also elected its first female president, Tina Abrams.

Last week’s elections also gave us the nation’s first Black female governor, as well as the first openly gay man, first Native American woman, and first Muslim elected to the U.S. Senate. It marked a turning point for Native American women, whose leadership in their families and communities has rarely translated to formal political power.

The modern, centralized Navajo government has been led by men since its establishment over a century ago. Navajo nation spans 27,000 square miles in Arizona, New Mexico and Utah. It’s second in population to the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma. Some Navajo people believe traditional teachings prohibit women from holding top government positions. Others say women’s absence stands in contrast to the matrilineal structure of Diné society.

Curley, who narrowly defeated attorney Justin Jones, told the AP she faced sexist rhetoric while campaigning and expects to be held to a higher standard as the first woman president.

“As women, we have to work twice or triple as hard, especially within Navajo politics,” said Curley, who was also the first female to lead the legislative branch as speaker of the tribal council.

Upon taking office in January, she plans to transition the Navajo Nation away from coal development, historically a major economic engine for the tribe, and reassert its leading role in national discussions around federal Indian policy.

In St. Paul, Minnesota, newly-elected Senator, Democrat Peggy Flanagan, of the White Earth Nation and the state’s outgoing lieutenant governor, credited supporters from her community. “I could not run for the U. S. Senate without Native women. I could not exist in the way that I do without Native women,” she stated.

A victory for Democrat Mary Peltola, a Yup’ik woman, leading in Alaska’s still unsettled Senate race as of this writing, would mark the first time three Native people have served in the chamber simultaneously.

In the House, Kansas Democrat Sharice Davids, Ho-Chunk, and Oklahoma Republican Josh Brecheen, Choctaw, won reelection. New York Democrat Claire Valdez, a citizen of Ysleta del Sur Pueblo, and Michigan Democrat Sean McCann, a citizen of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, became the first Native Americans elected to represent their states in Congress.

Deb Haaland notched another first in New Mexico. She has become the first female Native governor of a U.S. state. She is tasked with making good on campaign promises to make life more affordable for struggling New Mexicans and addressing persistently poor education outcomes in the state.

“It makes me very happy that we’re able to have a presence,” Haaland said. “It’s not just a slogan. It matters that people feel represented.”

Source used: Associated Press

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