Kalle BenallieICT
For the first time in its 35-year history, the Navajo Nation elected a woman to be president. Crystalyne Curley and Chris Deschene won the presidential election against Justin Jones and Emily Ellison.
The election results are unofficial and will be certified by the Navajo Election Administration. Curley and Deschene received 32,094 votes compared to 30,979 votes for Jones and Elllison.
Jones said he will not concede and plans to challenge the vote count.
Curley thanked her family, her husband and the campaign volunteers.
“This could not have been possible without the Navajo people. This is your victory. We have all worked hard because we said we want a positive direction. This was the outcry for the people, for love…” she said.
She also thanked Deschene for being her running mate.
“We have grown so close together for the past few months. Our friendship, our partnership, collaboration goes back many years. This is a new challenge for us but we said we would already be ready on day one, that means tonight,” Curley said.
President Buu Nygren congratulated Curley on her win in a Facebook post.
“I congratulate Crystalyne Curley on her election victory and becoming the next President of the Navajo Nation. Serving as President is a tremendous responsibility, and I recognize the trust the Navajo people have placed in her,” he said.
Nygren also recognized Jones for his campaign efforts.
“Thank you for the time and effort you invested in your campaign and for sharing your vision for our Nation. Leadership extends beyond an election, and I wish you success as you continue serving our people,” he said.
Jones held his election watch party at the Navajo Nation Navajo Nation Fairground’s pavilion. Attendees there brought in their lawn chairs and blankets to see the results. Many purple balloons and campaign signs were hung throughout the venue.
About 6 miles north, Curley held her watch party at the Veteran’s Memorial Field House in Fort Defiance, Arizona. Attendees there were served foods like stew, chicken and pasta while sitting on the bleachers in the facility.
Each watch party had a live election results screen that showed how many chapter houses’ votes that had been counted and how many votes there were compared to the other candidates. The Navajo Nation has 110 chapter houses, which are like city halls or a community center at the local level of the Navajo Nation government.
Lorraine, Navajo, said Curley being the first woman to be Navajo Nation president is a good representation for women because women are leaders.
“To bring our ideas out there,” she said. “We needed a woman. We’re the ones who give out information, reports when the men come home. Then what do they do, they take our ideas, the woman’s ideas, they go back out there to work and they tell each other: ‘This is what my wife said. This is what my mother said.’”
Her son Lorin G., said he voted for Curley because it was a change and how she presented herself.
“I heard Justin Jones talk and he was just attacking her and her record on this side. He had no ideas, from what I heard, what his plans was for the future. She had some plans laid out with Chris Deschene,” he said.
Lorin said he was excited to see the change of Curley becoming the first president of the Navajo Nation in addition to Deb Haaland’s win in New Mexico for governor, becoming the first Native American woman to be elected in the position.
“Right now there’s a lot of these men all these years trying to move our nation forward but give her a chance. She may surprise us,” he said.
Anna Mike, Navajo, said she wasn’t surprised that Curley won and it felt like everyone at the watch party knew she was going to win before the final results came in.
“This morning I went to the chapter house. Everybody that I talked to, they said they voted for Curley because they trust her. I already knew it, like tonight I wasn’t surprised there were a lot of people here,” she said.
Curley’s longstanding leadership experience in the Navajo Nation government and holding titles like Miss Navajo Nation made Mike vote for Curley.
“This is a new beginning with the new generation with the younger people. We’re doing it for the younger people so they can learn something from it. Right now, the little kids, the children in school will recognize that she became the president so they will think that anything is possible,” Mike said.
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