L. Jace Killsback. Photo from Facebook
Killsback wins Northern Cheyenne Presidency by landslide
By Clara Caufield
Native Sun News Today Correspondent
nativesunnews.today LAME DEER, Mont. –– On Nov. 8, 2016, Northern Cheyenne voters went to the polls casting votes of very personal decision in a close-knit tribal community marking a significant change of the political guard. Overwhelmingly they chose L. Jace Killsback, former tribal council member and current Administrator, Board of Health, by a landslide and historic margin: giving him nearly 1,000 votes compared to challenger Tracy Robinson who gained only about 600 votes. Killsback will now lead the Northern Cheyenne Nation “The Fighting Cheyenne” for at least the next four years. Killsback becomes one of the youngest persons to be chosen for the highest office in the Tribe. Born and raised on the Northern Cheyenne Reservation he excelled academically at Colstrip High School near the reservation after which he attended college at U.C. Berkeley, California focusing on history and Native American studies. Returning to the reservation he was soon elected to the Tribal Council representing the Busby or White River Cheyenne District for ten years. During that time, he was instrumental in securing land purchases for the Tribe at Bear Butte, South Dakota long the heart of the sacred universe to the Cheyenne people and also devoted much time to youth matters. He has been a spokesperson for the Tribe on the national level including the National Indian Health Board, National Congress of American Indians and Montana Wyoming Tribal Leaders Council. In 2014 he resigned his Council seat to take on the challenge of reorganizing a troubled Tribal Health Department making massive staffing changes, somewhat controversial in the Cheyenne community but successfully managing an annual budget of eight million an amount much larger than the Tribal general fund. In his third effort to seek the office of Tribal President, Killsback seems to have particular appeal to the younger generation which is now the majority of the tribal membership, a significant voting bloc. Yet his victory also demonstrates broad appeal across the board, including the agricultural community which at one time viewed him as an adversary due to increased grazing fees when he chaired the Tribal grazing board and Land Authority, a key tribal committee. During campaign efforts, Killsback focused on the spiritual, mental and physical wellness for the tribal members, transparency, accountability and unity.
Read the rest of the story on the Native Sun News Today website: Killsback wins Northern Cheyenne Presidency by landslide (Contact Clara Caufield at acheyennevoice@gmail.com) Copyright permission Native Sun News
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