On the fifth anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court decision that affirmed the existence of the Muscogee Nation Reservation, candidates for the tribe’s legislative body have until 4 p.m. today to file for the Sept. 20 election.
Oklahoma’s Court of Criminal Appeals relied upon the July 9, 2020, landmark decision in McGirt v. Oklahoma to affirm the reservations of the Cherokee Nation, Chickasaw Nation, Choctaw Nation, Seminole Nation and other sovereign tribal nations.
With the criminal and civil jurisdictional impacts of the McGirt decision still being litigated, each of the Five Tribes is working through its regular election cycle this summer. July tribal elections are set in the Cherokee, Choctaw and Seminole nations, but the Chickasaw Nation’s 2025 election season ended prematurely after only one candidate filed for each office for the second year in a row.
Each tribe has its own election laws, giving campaigns in each tribe their own unique flavor. Cherokee Nation voters are halfway through their election cycle, with a July 26 runoff election set for District 4 on its Tribal Council. Further south, the Choctaw Nation and Seminole Nation of Oklahoma are holding their first round elections on the same Saturday: July 12.
The following article offers an overview of where the Five Tribes’ 2025 election cycles stand.
Cherokee Nation: Clifton Hughes appears to avoid runoff, District 4 to runoff, challenges fail
Cherokee citizens registered within District 4 will go to the polls on Saturday, July 26, to select a new member of the Cherokee Nation Tribal Council.
District 4 — which includes parts of Muskogee, McIntosh and Sequoyah counties — will see Uriah Grass of Vian and Janis Dearman of Porum compete to succeed Councilor Mike Dobbins. Grass, a nurse, narrowly led in the first round election with a 59-vote advantage. Early walk-in voting is scheduled for July 19, 22, 23 and 24 at the Cherokee Nation Election Commission office in Tahlequah.
District 9 — which includes the southern tip of Craig County, northern Mayes County and southwestern Delaware County with all of Lake Eucha — had been set to see a runoff election until two candidates, Anthony ‘Puddin’ Davis and Debra McGlasson, withdrew from the election after ballots were initially counted. While McGlasson initially tied in second place with Mike Purcell of Big Cabin, McGlasson withdrew and endorsed Purcell.
Unbeknownst to McGlasson, the Cherokee Nation election code specifically notes in 18 C.N.C. § 36(D) that “any votes for [a withdrawing] candidate shall not be counted or considered in determining the winner of a general or special election or if a run-off is necessary.” (The Cherokee Nation code available online through the attorney general’s office is several years out of date and does not include the section in question. However, a copy of the Cherokee code updated through April 2023 does include the cited section.) With the code silent on the effect of a withdrawal after the election was concluded, the election commission requested an attorney general’s opinion from Attorney General Chad Harsha, according to the Cherokee Phoenix.
Harsha found that under Cherokee law a candidate may withdraw “at anytime prior to the certification of final election results” and if a candidate withdraws after unofficial results are tabulated then the election results should be retabulated without the withdrawing candidate.
“Once a candidate lawfully withdraws by written notice, any votes cast for them may not be counted or considered in determining the election outcomes of the Cherokee Nation. As a result, the Cherokee Nation Election Commission must recalculate the results of the general election excluding all votes for any withdrawn candidate. The two candidates who then hold the highest number of valid, countable votes shall be eligible for the runoff election — unless one candidate holds a simple majority of the remaining votes, in which case no runoff election may occur,” the opinion’s short answer reads. “(…) A candidate may lawfully withdraw at any point during the election, including after votes have been cast, until a final election outcome has been determined and certified as the final result.”
With votes for McGlasson and Davis removed from the June 7 election results, Clifton Hughes of Colcord appears set to succeed outgoing Council Speaker Mike Shambaugh. Hughes, a longtime Oklahoma Turnpike Authority employee, avoided a runoff in the retabulated results with 52.1 percent of the vote. The Cherokee Nation Supreme Court rejected a challenge filed by Purcell through his attorney, former Principal Chief Chad Smith. The court initially found that Smith missed the deadline to file Purcell’s case, with him filing on June 23 and Cherokee law setting the deadline for election challenges to be lodged as June 16.
However, Smith argued in a motion to reconsider that the Cherokee Nation Election Commission did not finalize the new results until after 5 p.m. June 16, making it impossible to file the challenge before the 4 p.m. deadline to file. The commission, represented by Harvey Chaffin, argued Purcell was notified of the updated election results at 8:59 a.m. on June 16 and that the suit was untimely. On June 30, the court “overruled” the motion to reconsider.
Another election challenge filed by District 5 candidate Charles Wilkes argued the June 7 election should be invalidated after one of two precincts in the district opened an hour and a half late on Election Day. Unexplainably, Wilkes cited several provisions of Cherokee law that do not appear to actually exist in his brief, drawing criticism from the nation’s attorney general’s office in their response.
“Appellant’s appeal petition filed in this matter misrepresents the law of the Cherokee Nation. While courts generally afford some procedural leniency to individuals appearing pro se, such designation does not excuse them from the obligation to present truthful arguments and authorities to the court,” Harsha wrote. “To be sure, a mere scrivener’s error contained in an offered citation may be overlooked. In this instance, however, appellant supports his entire argument by advocating reliance on legal provisions which plainly do not exist within the Cherokee Nation code. Appellant even states that the ‘statutory excerpts’ to Cherokee law are included as an attachment to his petition. The heading of the attachment provides, in no uncertain terms: ‘[t]his document contains the full, verbatim text of the Cherokee Nation Election Code provisions that were violated…’ before citing to three alleged statutory provisions that misstate the law, in the case of ‘Title 26 § 61’; and state non-existent law in the case of ‘Title 26 § 65(C)’ and ‘Title 26 § 66.’ Whether the court finds that the appellant offered these self-serving citations with the intent to mislead the court or simply erred in his legal research, the result is the same: the citations and any related arguments must be wholly disregarded, as they simply do not exist and certainly do not reflect the governing law of the Cherokee Nation.”
The Cherokee high court found that the Election Commission’s decision to extend voting hours and notify voters via social media was within their statutory authority under 26 C.N.C. § 11(C)(8), which allows the commission to change the location of polling places given “unforeseen circumstances.” In this case, the Rudisill Library in north Tulsa was not unlocked until an hour an a half after polling was supposed to open and voting was extend an equal amount of time into the evening to allow voters a full 12 hours to access the polls on Election Day.
Incumbents Candessa Tehee, Joshua Sam, Melvina Shotpouch, Kendra McGeady, Danny Callison and Johnny Jack Kidwell won reelection in June, while Ashley Grant won the open District 5 seat outright. New and returning councilors are set to be sworn in Aug. 14.
With no challengers, Chickasaw Nation elections canceled again
For the second year in a row, no opposition filed for office in the Chickasaw Nation’s elections, and all candidates who filed were elected by default, according to an announcement from Chickasaw Nation Election Secretary Jerri Martin.
Elections had been scheduled for the Panola District Seat 1, Pickens District Seat 3, Pontotoc District Seat 5, Tishomingo District Seat 2 and Supreme Court Seat 1. Candidates elected by default to each position were all incumbents:
- Panola Seat 1: Beth Alexander
- Pickens Seat 3: Charles Marris
- Pontotoc Seat 5: Lisa Billy Johnson
- Tishomingo Seat 2: Derrick Priddy
- Supreme Court Seat 1: Mark Colbert
Choctaw Nation: Constitutional amendments, 4 seats to be decided
While every voter in the Choctaw Nation will be eligible to vote on the nation’s constitutional amendments, not every legislative district will see its regularly scheduled general election July 12. Candidates in Districts 6, 7, 9 and 10 — Jennifer Woods, Joey Tom, James Dry and Anthony Dillard, respectively — were elected without opposition. Tom was initially set to face Adrian Johnico in the election, but Johnico died before the election.
In District 4, incumbent Jess Henry is running for another term against challenger Kenneth Marshall. Henry is a former police officer first elected in 2021, while Marshall is a Choctaw Nation maintenance employee, according to the tribe’s voter guide.
District 5, which features a special election after incumbent Ron Perry resigned April 1 facing charges on six counts of sexual battery, has the most crowded field, with seven candidates filing for the seat. Tami (Gonzalez) Cantrell, Marlena Crase, Sharona Farmer, Kimberly Ford, Earl Smith, Vincent “Vinnie” Terrell and Jennifer Turner all filed to succeed Perry in the July 12 election. The winning candidate will serve the remainder of Perry’s four-year term, which began in 2023. If no candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote, then the top-two vote earners will advance to an Aug. 9 runoff election.
In District 12, incumbent Councilor James Frazier is not seeking another term, leaving Regina Mabray and Vickie McClure competing to represent the open seat. Mabray is a former teacher and school librarian, while McClure is a member of the Choctaw Nation Housing Authority Board.
Muscogee Nation: Candidate filing concluding, constitutional amendment on ballot
Candidates for office in the 2025 Muscogee Nation elections will conclude candidate filing today at the Muscogee Nation Housing Authority Building in Okmulgee, according to the tribe’s election calendar. The nation is comprised of eight legislative districts, which each elect an “A” and a “B” councilor. In 2025, the nation’s B seats are all up for election, according to the tribe’s election code. Principal and second chief elections, as well as A seat elections, are scheduled for 2027.
Despite having legislative districts, the Muscogee Nation currently allows every citizen to vote in every district’s legislative election. But during the tribe’s Sept. 20 primary election, citizens are set to vote on a constructional amendment to reestablish district-based voting for Muscogee National Council seats, according to Mvskoke Media. If two-thirds of voters approve the amendment, district-based voting would return for the nation’s 2027 elections.
The Muscogee Nation Constitution creates two classes of Muscogee citizens, “full citizens” and “citizens.” In order to have the “right to hold office” and file for the 2025 election cycle, Muscogee Nation candidates must be “full citizens,” or have a “blood quantum (which) is one quarter or more Muscogee (Creek) Indian.” All Muscogee citizens have the right to vote in tribal elections, and the only constitutional difference between the classes of citizens is the right to hold office.
Blood quantum is a legal fiction which purports to measure the Native American ancestry of nearly every tribal citizen in the United States. When the Dawes Rolls were created, every citizen enrolled was given an estimation of their “Indian blood” by federal agents, which may or may not have been accurate. Regardless of their accuracy, blood quantum derived from the Dawes Rolls represent the gold standard for determining the amount of “Indian blood” listed on a modern-day citizen’s CDIB card. Attorneys like Ashleigh Lussenden have penned law review articles criticizing strict blood quantum requirements for limiting the reproductive freedom of families by encouraging marriages that preserve higher quanta.
Muscogee “full citizens” are eligible to run for the Muscogee National Council if they:
- Are over 18 years of age;
- Have resided in their district for one year prior to filing;
- Were registered to vote in the Muscogee Nation six months prior to filing;
- have not had a felony conviction within 10 years upon the date of filing; and
- pay a $500 filing fee.
Muscogee voters have a generous election calendar with plenty of time to prepare a voting plan. The absentee ballot request deadline for the election is Aug. 27, with the deadline to register to vote set for Sep. 9. Early voting is set for Sep. 17 and 18 from 7 a.m to 7 p.m., with the primary election set for Sep. 20. Runoff elections, if necessary, are set for Nov. 8.
Seminole: Chief, assistant chief and General Council races loom
On July 12, Seminole Nation of Oklahoma citizens will vote for the tribe’s chief and assistant chief positions. If no candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote in either chief election, a runoff election between the two candidates who earned the most votes is set to be held Aug. 9.
The Seminole Nation chief’s race drew six candidates: incumbent Lewis Johnson, Alfreda Doonkeen, Stephaney Lambert, Richmond Larney II, Alex Rabiee and Sena Yesslith. The assistant chief’s race is slightly less crowded with five candidates: incumbent Brian Thomas Palmer, Ronnie Lee Harjo Jr., Sheila Wandette Harjo, Henson Dewayne Lena and David Wayne Narcomey.
Each of the tribe’s 14 bands had also been scheduled to elect two representatives for the Seminole Nation General Council, but 10 of bands did not see enough candidates file to hold elections. While three bands of the tribe — the Dosar Barkus, Hvteyicvlke and Thomas Palmer bands — saw their seats filled by default, five bands — the Caesar Bruner, Eufaula, Norcup Harjo, Tusekia Harjo and Rewalke bands — saw only one candidate file and will have to “internally nominate and fill the vacancy thus created,” per the tribe’s election code. Two bands, the Fushutche and Mekusukey, saw no candidates file and will have to nominate both of their representatives internally.
The remaining four bands — the Hecete, Ocese, Tallahassee and Ceyvha — will hold their elections July 12. Seminole Nation General Council elections are a top two, first-past-the-post election, meaning the top two candidates will be elected to the council regardless of their vote shares.
