Joshua Randall “J.R.” Wind and former Rep. William Lowe are challenging Okmulke District “B” seat incumbent Rep. Nelson Harjo Sr. in the 2025 Muscogee National Council election. Harjo is seeking his second term in office after unseating Rep. James Jennings in 2021.
Lowe, who lost reelection to the Okmulke District “A” seat in 2023 while serving as speaker of the National Council, is also a familiar face in the district.
As Muscogee citizens plan a meeting to discuss removing the Muscogee Nation Supreme Court justices from office, Mvskoke Media asked each candidate their views on the court’s controversial decision that held the descendants of Muscogee Freedmen are eligible for tribal citizenship. Both Lowe and Wind indicated they supported complying with the court decision. Harjo, on the other hand, said the decision created a constitutional crisis, and he would sign a petition to remove the justices who wrote it.
The Okmulke District covers the central section of the Muscogee Nation Reservation and overlaps Okmulgee County in eastern Oklahoma. The Muscogee Nation holds elections every two years for its National Council, which has eight districts, each with an “A” seat and a “B” seat. While council candidates are required to live in their district, every Muscogee citizen may vote in every council election — for now. This year’s Sept. 20 ballot contains a question that would reinstitute district-based voting if passed.
Early voting will be held Sept. 17 and 18 throughout the reservation, and the election is set to be held Saturday, Sept. 20. The descendants of Muscogee Freedmen will not be enrolled prior to the election.
The following cheat sheet is based on official candidate biographies, campaign websites, social media pages, interviews by Mvskoke Media and other publicly available information. The candidates are listed in alphabetical order.
If no candidate in the Okmulgee District “B” seat receives a majority of the vote Sept. 20, a runoff election would be held Nov. 8.
Nelson Harjo Sr. (incumbent)
Hometown:Â Okmulgee
Background/profession: According to his interview with Mvskoke Media, Nelson Harjo Sr. grew up in Wewoka and worked for the tribe before he was elected in 2021.
Platform:Â With the impact of potential federal funding reductions unknown, Harjo told Mvskoke Media he would like to see the nation’s businesses provide a strong independent source of funding for the nation.
“We need to develop more businesses and diversity of funding, having the goal of actually going to a point where we can eventually become self sufficient,” Harjo said. “Probably won’t happen in my time.”
Asked if the Muscogee Nation Supreme Court’s Freedmen decision created a constitutional crisis, Harjo said it did. He also said he would sign the petition to impeach the Muscogee Nation justices who participated in the Freedmen decision.
“I don’t have an issue with signing that because, although I may be an elected official, I am also a citizen of this tribe,” Harjo said. “So, yes.”
Asked about Hill’s executive order to begin the process of implementing the court’s decision, Harjo said he would support the legislation.
“I’m going to vote for the action that we have to take,” Harjo said. “Even though I don’t agree with what the ruling was, I am going to do whatever I can to support whatever action our departments have to take for the tribe, because if these policies aren’t in place and certain things are not updated, then we absolutely cannot operate just on a whim. We have to have something that can guide us.”
He also said he would support appealing the Freedmen decision to federal court.
Links:Â Facebook | Mvskoke Media
William Lowe
Hometown: Okmulgee
Background/profession: William Lowe grew up near Eufaula and spent nine years in the U.S. Marine Corps before attending Bacone College and Grand Canyon University, according to his interview with Mvskoke Media. He was elected to the Muscogee National Council in 2019 representing the Okmulke “A” seat, but he lost his reelection bid to Robyn Whitecloud in 2023.
Platform:Â Lowe’s 2025 campaign focuses on improving businesses owned by the Muscogee Nation.
“We talk about economic development every time at the candidate forums every campaign season,” Lowe told Mvskoke Media. “I want to be able to work with the tribal council to even motivate them for all of us to get in there and talk about the business entities and how we can progress forward.”
Asked about the Muscogee Freedmen decision, Lowe indicated that he supported following the court’s order.
“If the Supreme Court says they’re citizens, then we need to be able to adapt and control and change our budgets, because budget season is here, and we are going to have to increase our budget for those citizens coming in,” Lowe said.
Lowe also said he supports the district voting amendment, which would end all-district voting for National Council seats.
Links:Â Mvskoke Media | Campaign Facebook | Personal FacebookÂ
Joshua Randall Wind
Hometown:Â Henryetta
Background/profession: Joshua Randall Wind — who goes by “J.R.” — graduated from Henryetta High School and Langston University, according to his interview with Mvskoke Media. He has worked as a community specialist for the Muscogee Nation for four years.
Platform: Speaking with Mvskoke Media, Wind cited his time working as a community specialist as motivating him to run for office.
“They feel like they’re not being heard or no one is listening to them,” Wind said of his fellow citizens. “I want to change that.”
Asked about the Muscogee Freedmen decision, Wind said he applauded the decision, but expected tensions to be high as the tribe implements it.
“It’s a 50-50 thing to me, honestly. I applaud it, but at the same time, I know it’s going to be a strenuous thing, not only on the tribe, but also the communities as well,” Wind said. “We’ll go with it, we’ll work it, and we’re going to have lots of bumps and all that, but we’ll get through it. I think we’ll get through it as long as we stay as a whole.”
Asked whether the Muscogee Supreme Court justices who wrote the Freedmen decision should be removed from office, Wind said he thought most citizens would support removing them, but he indicated he did not think that was the best move.
“I’ll be honest with you, the first reaction from a lot of people is going to be ‘Yes,’” Wind said. “But you can’t really blame the judges because they’re doing what they’re on the panel to do.”
Asked whether the tribe should lower its one-quarter blood quantum requirement for holding office, Wind said he thought the nation needs to consider changing the rule because fewer and fewer Muscogee citizens meet the threshold to serve.
“A lot of our full-bloods are not around, and we’re losing a lot of our three-fourths and higher people as we get older and go away,” Wind said. “I think that is something we are going to have to look at.”
Links:Â Mvskoke Media | Personal Facebook
