"the People's Paths!" Cherokee News Path - CN Council Approves New Voting Districts

TAHLEQUAH, Oklahoma – The Cherokee Nation Tribal Council voted to override a veto and adopt new council districts during the August council meeting. Principal Chief Chad Smith vetoed the proposed resolution because he found Constitutional flaws, saying he did not think the districts were “reasonably equal.”

“The question is whether 160 is reasonably equal to 100,” Smith said. “One of the proposed districts has 160 Cherokees for every 100 Cherokees another district has. I don’t think 160 is reasonably equal to 100, and it seems quite likely that Cherokee Nation Courts would find the current proposal invalid under our Constitution.”

The Council voted 13-4 in support of the districting proposal.

“I feel very confident that we passed a quality piece of legislation,” said Chuck Hoskin, Jr., who represents Craig and Nowata counties on the Tribal Council. “It is up to us [Tribal Council] to determine what philosophically ought to drive redistricting and I think we’ve said loud and clear that it ought to be one person per district and that it ought to be 15 districts.”

Principal Chief Smith had proposed other possible districting plans that would have much smaller population differences and would allow for multiple seats per district, allowing for equal representation.

In other business the Council unanimously approved the Principal Chief’s nominations of Patsy Morton and Curtis Rohr as commissioners of the Cherokee Nation Election Commission. Morton, of Adair County, previously served as chair of the commission during the last election year. It is a first term of service on the Election Commission for Rohr, of Rogers County.

The Council also confirmed Principal Chief Smith’s re-nomination of Jim Hummingbird as a commissioner of the Cherokee Nation Tax Commission. Chief Smith’s other board nominations approved by the Council included: Dr. Leticea Stevenson-Pablo and Sharon Swepston as board members of the Cherokee Nation Comprehensive Care Agency; Lorilee Smiley as a board member of the Economic Development Trust Authority; Roberta Gibson as a board member of the Sequoyah Schools Board of Education; and Marty Matlock as a board member of the Cherokee Nation Environmental Protection Commission.

Chief Smith honored five veterans in his state of the nation address. Three members of the Sanders family from the Dwight Mission community in Sequoyah County were honored: Alice Sanders Singleton, Harvey “Buck” Sanders and Lorene “Dolly” Sanders Farris. Dolly’s husband, Charles Farris, from Sequoyah County, and active serviceman Mitch Sisco from Cherokee County were also honored for their military service.

The Chief ended his address with an invitation to everyone to join in the festivities during the Cherokee National Holiday, held each year over Labor Day weekend.

The entire August 11 Cherokee Nation Tribal Council meeting can be viewed on the Cherokee Nation’s Web site at www.cherokee.org.

The next Cherokee Nation Tribal Council meeting is scheduled for September 15, at 6 p.m. in the Tribal Council Chambers at the W.W. Keeler Tribal Complex on Highway 62 south of Tahlequah.

To view the newly approved redistricting map.