The Muscogee Nation’s Tvlse District is certain to have an experienced legislator holding its “B” seat after the Nov. 8 runoff election, with either incumbent Rep. Leonard Gouge or former Rep. Lucian Tiger III set to take office. The runoff marks a rematch of the 2021 election, where Gouge narrowly ousted Tiger with 52.8 percent of the vote. While both candidates have heightened their online presence since the September general election, neither candidate responded to requests for interviews prior to the publication of this article.
Tiger, 56, previously served on the National Council from 2013 to 2021. A real estate agent, he is of the Wind Clan. While on the council, Tiger was accused of a housing violation related to use of the Muscogee Nation’s mortgage assistance program, and he was accused of sexual harassment by Rep. Dode Barnett. However, four years after losing to Gouge, he placed first in the 2025 general election among a field of three but fell short of avoiding a runoff. Tiger declined to conduct an interview with Mvskoke Media during the general election.
On his new Facebook page, Tiger lists his prior achievements in office as providing payments during the COVID-19 pandemic, purchasing Council Oak Comprehensive Healthcare and increasing the transparency of economic development projects.
Tiger told a community forum in Glenpool that, if elected, he would attend every committee meeting.
“I’m going to be in that seat at every meeting. Whether it’s my committee meeting or there is another committee meeting, [I will] be there,” Tiger said. “Our citizens, when they vote for any of these candidates, they want you in that chair at that meeting. They don’t want you Zooming in. I didn’t have that privilege, or an opportunity to Zoom, when I was on council. We had to be there.”
Gouge, 65, has served on the National Council since 2021. He is of the Deer Clan, with Apeka as his ceremonial ground. Before his election he served on the Muscogee Nation Citizenship Board and was chairman of the Koweta Indian Community and the Tulsa Creek Indian Community organizations. Before working in tribal government, he was a member of the U.S. Army.
Gouge told Mvskoke Media ahead of the general election that his priorities are to eliminate at-will employment in the nation and enforce the Indian Child Welfare Act.
“If I get reelected, during that term I’d also (like) to get a cemetery for the veterans and citizens,” Gouge said.
The Tvlse District includes parts of Tulsa, Sand Springs, Berryhill, Lotsee, Jenks, Bixby, Glenpool and western parts of Broken Arrow. Oct. 28 is the registration deadline for Muscogee Nation citizens to vote in the runoff. Early voting will be held on Nov. 5 and Nov. 6 ahead of the Nov. 8 in-person election. While voters approved an amendment to return to district voting in the general election in the future, every registered Muscogee voter may still vote in the Tvlse District runoff this year.
Gouge on Freedmen ruling: ‘Let’s move forward’
In July, the Muscogee Nation Supreme Court ruled without dissent that the descendants of former slaves must be admitted as citizens under the tribe’s treaty with the federal government. Muscogee Nation citizens have largely criticized the decision, with some attempting to circulate a recall petition against the justices, although details about whether the petition has even been formally filed remain unclear.
In August, Principal Chief David Hill issued an executive order that no citizenship applications for Freedmen be approved “until all law and policy have been fully reviewed and amended to meet the qualification requirements under Article II of the Treaty of 1866,” the treaty on which the Supreme Court based its ruling.
Functionally, Hill’s order delayed enrollment of Muscogee Freedmen until after the 2025 election cycle, but it has also spurred a legal challenge from the plaintiffs — Rhonda Grayson and Jeffrey Kennedy — who said “Hill’s obstructionist order undermines this court’s authority and violates the separation of powers.”
Asked about the topic by Mvskoke Media on Sept. 5, Gouge said he would support legislation to implement the court’s ruling.
“The Supreme Court made a decision. It’s up to the attorneys to determine the legalese to decide how it has to be done,” Gouge said. “But if it’s completed and done and we are through with it, (then) let’s move forward.”
Asked if he would sign a recall petition circulating to impeach the justices of the Muscogee Supreme Court for “treason,” Gouge said he believed he should not, since the National Council plays a role in impeachment proceedings triggered by any successful recall petition.
“The council has a role in this if they get the names together, and it’s probably best for me not to sign,” Gouge said. “Because I may play a part in this role, and I want to be neutral [until] that time, because I don’t want to tarnish my responsibilities if I sign.”
While Tiger did not schedule an interview with Mvskoke Media for the 2025 election, a post on his campaign TikTok outlines his views on the Freedmen decision.
“I do not feel that we can allow our tribally-funded programs to suffer from what just happened by our Supreme Court,” Tiger said. “I don’t agree with that decision. I don’t think it was correct. I don’t know how those individuals thought they could amend our constitution without a vote of the people.”
Tiger also advocated passing legislation “to protect by-blood citizens” of the nation, meaning non-Freedmen.
“You have to implement laws in place to protect our by-blood citizens,” Tiger said. “There is going to be a lot of more court cases, in my opinion, because there is still a lot of unanswered questions (caused) by that ruling.”
Tiger pitches land purchases
Gouge’s campaign Facebook page has been relatively quiet since the general election, but he has posted an infographic supporting his reelection.
“A vote for me is a vote for our sovereignty, economic development, preservation of our traditions, language, land and water,” Gouge wrote. “I don’t make promises because I am only one vote, but I will always stand up for all citizens regardless of where you reside.”
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Since the general election, Tiger has created a website, Facebook and TikTok account. In a TikTok post from a Wetumka forum, Tiger argued the nation should purchase land along U.S. Route 75 to fuel the nation’s economic development.
“I feel that we need to own all the frontage land we can on Highway 75 between Okmulgee and Tulsa,” Tiger, a real estate agent, said. “If we own that frontage, we can allow and control what kind of businesses go in there. We make sure that land is in trust, then we have taxation dollars. That’s 6 percent taxation that is going to come back, and we are going to put that into our programs.”
Tiger’s website lists his priorities as “strengthening essential services, protecting language and culture, defending sovereignty, and ensuring local voices drive representation.”
Oct. 28 is the deadline for Muscogee Nation voters to register for the Nov. 8 runoff election. Early voting will be held on Nov. 5 and Nov. 6 ahead of the Nov. 8 in-person election.
