Over the next few months, The Wellbriety Movement will be providing some communications around the importance of registering to vote! Every vote counts! Remember there is power in numbers. When we vote and get our family members to vote, we can impact outcomes and change the debate. Below we have provided some information on Native Candidates that are running for office. It is important to see how and who in our community is paving the road for Native voices.
A record number of Native American women are running for congressional office in 2020.
There are 18 women congressional candidates in 2020 who identify as Native American alone or Native American in combination with other races, 15 Native American women candidates for the U.S. House and 3 Native American women for the U.S. Senate. This number includes those who may have already lost their primary elections. This is the largest number of Native American women who have run for the House or Senate, overall and in both parties, in any single election cycle.
Indian Country Today brings us the most updated information on Native candidates across the country. Updated on Aug. 10, 2020:
Arizona had 11 Native candidates:
- WON: Deborah Ann Begay, Navajo, Justice of the Peace, Moon Valley
- WON: Gabriella Cazares-Kelly, Tohono O’odham, Pima County Recorder
- WON: Domingo DeGrazia, Eastern Band of Cherokee, AZ House 10
- WON: Sally Ann Gonzales, Pascua Yaqui, AZ Senate 3
- WON: Jennifer Jermaine, White Earth Nation, AZ House 18
- ADVANCES TO GENERAL: Makius Marks, Navajo, Flagstaff Unified School District
- LOST: Debbie Nez Manuel, Navajo, AZ House 26
- WON: Jamescita Peshlakai, Navajo, AZ Senate 7
- WON: Victoria Steele, Seneca, AZ Senate 9
- WON: Arlando Teller, Navajo, AZ House 7
- WON: Myron Tsosie, Navajo, AZ House 7
- WON: Judy Begay, Navajo, Coconino County, Board of Supervisors
- WON: Felicia French, Pascua Yaqui, AZ House 6
- WON: Bernadette Kniffen, San Carlos Apache, Gila County, Board of Supervisors
- WON: Lena Fowler, Navajo, Coconino County, Board of Supervisors
Kansas has 4 Native candidates:
- WON: Stephanie Byers, Chickasaw, KS House 86
- WON: Sharice Davids, Ho-Chunk, U.S. House, District 3
- WON: Christina Haswood, Navajo, KS House 10
- WON: Ponka-We Victors, Tohono O’odham and Ponca Tribe, KS House 103
Michigan has 1 Native candidate:
- WON: Julie Dye, Pokagon Band Potawatomi Nation, Cass County Commissioner Board 1
Washington has 5 Native candidates:
- LOST: Glenda Breiler, Colville, WA House 22
- Katherine Festa, Haida, Federal Way City Council
- LOST: Amanda Funaro, Choctaw, Jefferson County Commission, District 2
- WON: Debra Lekanoff, Tlingit, WA House 40
- WON: Raquel Montoya-Lewis, Isleta Pueblo, Washington Supreme Court
Your Vote Matters; Register to Vote for the 2020 Presidential Election
The Wellbriety Movement is strongly encouraging everyone to register to vote! To get more information, visit usa gov.
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