
Three Arizona tribal leaders on diverse slate of 11 electoral voters
Monday, December 14, 2020
Cronkite News
WASHINGTON – In what a former Arizona elector called “a sweet irony,” the slate of 11 Democratic presidential electors who will cast Arizona’s Electoral College votes Monday includes three tribal leaders.
Gila River Indian Community Gov. Stephen Roe Lewis, Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez and Tohono O’odham Nation Chairman Ned Norris Jr. will join eight other Democrats to cast the state’s votes for President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.
While it may have been a sweet irony, however, it was no accident.
Arizona Democratic Party Chair Felecia Rotellini said she wanted to
choose electors
who would “represent the diversity of Arizona, and the diversity of Arizona voters, as well as Arizona Democratic voters.” That included the three tribal leaders with “deep roots to our state.”
“The three leaders of the tribes that we selected are also great partners with the Arizona Democratic Party in terms of helping us to promote candidates that reflect the values that we all believe in – the values that were on the ballot in this election,” Rotellini said. “Without their leadership, we wouldn’t be where we are today.”
Norris did not respond to requests for comment and Lewis declined. But Nez called being chosen an elector is “a big honor.”
“I’m overjoyed, and happy to cast the Navajo electorate vote for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris,” he said.


Note: This story originally appeared on Cronkite News. It is published via a Creative Commons license. Cronkite News is produced by the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University.
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