Navajo Nation names new director of Washington office

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Former Navajo Nation Washington Office executive director Santee Lewis, left, and Lashawna R. Tso, who is the newly-appointed leader of the NNWO. Photo courtesy Navajo Nation Office of President and Vice President

Monday, May 2, 2022

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The Navajo Nation Washington Office has a new leader in Lashawna R. Tso.

Tso is a Navajo citizen who has worked on Indian issues for the Navajo Nation and for the state of New Mexico. She was announced as the executive director of the tribe’s Washington office by President Jonathan Nez.

“We are proud to welcome one of our young Diné professionals back to the Navajo Nation to serve our people,” Nez said in a news release on Friday. “With her extensive background and experience, we are confident that she will advocate for our people and strengthen our Nation’s relations at the federal level.”

“She grew up on the Navajo Nation, achieved a higher education, and now she is returning home to help our people once again,” said Nez, who is seeking re-election as president of the tribe.

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Lashawna R. Tso appointed to serve as the new Executive Director for the Navajo Nation Washington Office

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According to the release, Tso will start her job on May 16.

“I am deeply honored to serve our people in Washington, D.C.,” Tso said. “It could not have come at a better time – under the Biden-Harris Administration, we have an opportunity to engage with our federal partners, and members of congress in a meaningful way.”

“The Washington Office will continue to work hard to ensure the investments made by Congress will benefit our people and communities across Navajo,” Tso added. “I am ready to get to work.”

Tso succeeds Santee Lewis as executive director of the Washington office. Under Lewis’s leadership, the tribe has been moving the office into a building that will be known as the Navajo Nation Embassy.

The tribe hasn’t announced an opening date for the embassy, which is located near the U.S. Capitol.