John Warren to serve a full term as chairman of Pokagon Band


John Warren, at podium, serves as chairman of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians. Photo from Facebook

The Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians announced the results of a general election that was held on Saturday.

John P. Warren was re-elected as chairman. He will serve his first full term as leader of the tribe -- he first rose to the position after a special election in 2014.

Tribal voters also chose Mark Parrish as secretary, Matthew Wesaw and Becky Price as members-at-large, and Judy Winchester as elders representative. Vice-Chairman Bob Moody, Treasurer Eugene Magnuson and four other members were not up for re-election this cycle.

The tribe's headquarters are located in Dowagiac, in the southwestern part of the state. Its service area extends into Indiana, where a land-into-trust application is pending before the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The tribe has seen support in South Bend but the application has been controversial elsewhere in the state. Warren has been defending the tribe's rights to follow the land-into-trust process.

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