Dry Creek Rancheria calls off election amid enrollment dispute

Monday, November 19, 2012  

The Dry Creek Rancheria of California called off its election after the membership qualifications of two candidates were questioned.

Carmen Cordova Soltanizadeh, 34, and Laila DeRouen, 29, received disenrollment notices last month. Both say they are being targeted for political reasons -- both have parents who were former chairs of the tribe and were removed.

“They have no cause to disenroll me. They're just making stuff up,” Soltanizadeh told The Santa Rosa Press-Democrat.

Membership is traced to a 1915 roll of people who were living on the reservation. Chairman Harvey Hopkins said the list is reviewed every time there's an election.

“We've been down this road before. When election time comes, we have to review every member who wants to run, to make sure they are members of Dry Creek,” Hopkins told the paper.

Get the Story:
Tribal roots dispute delays Dry Creek Pomo election (The Santa Rosa Press-Democrat 11/19)