S moke S ignals
AUGUST 1, 2017
5
Previous Tribal Council service an advantage in recent elections
‘Experienced’ candidates have won almost 70 percent of seats
By Dean Rhodes
Smoke Signals editor
Being a Tribal Council incumbent
or having previous Tribal Council
service on your candidate resume
is an advantage in running for a
Grand Ronde Tribal Council seat, a
Smoke Signals analysis of the last
13 Tribal Council elections reveals.
Thirty-nine Tribal Council seats
have been contested since Septem-
ber 2004 and 27 have been won by
incumbents or Tribal members who
had previously served on Tribal
Council.
Of that 69.2 percent success rate,
22 incumbents were re-elected and
five previous Tribal Council mem-
bers were put back in leadership
positions after breaks in service –
Ed Pearsall in 2013, June Sherer in
2011 and 2007, Jack Giffen Jr. in
2010 and Val Sheker in 2006.
Smoke Signals examined the last
13 elections, dating back to 2004
when a slate of three Tribal mem-
bers without previous council expe-
rience succeeded in winning Tribal
Council seats – Angie Blackwell,
Chris Mercier and Buddy West.
In addition to those three Tribal
Council newcomers, the nine other
successful Tribal Council candi-
dates who did not have previous
council experience since Resto-
ration were Kathleen Tom and
Wink Soderberg in 2005, Steve
Bobb Sr. in 2007, Toby McClary in
2009, Jon A. George in 2012, De-
nise Harvey in 2013, Tonya Glea-
son-Shepek in 2014, Brenda Tuomi
in 2015 and Kathleen George in
2016.
George, Harvey, McClary and
Blackwell were the top vote-getters
in the years they were elected.
Being just an incumbent, how-
ever, was not as large of an ad-
vantage. Over the 13-year period,
incumbents won 22 Tribal Council
seats while challengers – with
previous council experience or not
– won 17 seats for a 56-44 split.
In a much smaller sampling,
Tribal Council chairpersons up for
re-election retained their seats ev-
ery time during the 13-year period.
Cheryle A. Kennedy won re-election
in 2012, 2009 and 2006, and Reyn
Leno was re-elected in 2014 while
serving as Tribal Council chair.
Leno is not seeking re-election in
2017, freeing approximately 500
Tribal votes to go to other candi-
dates.
This year, three Tribal Council
candidates are incumbents or have
previous council experience – Ton-
ya Gleason-Shepek, Chris Mercier
and Mark Mercier – while three
candidates are seeking their first
term on Tribal Council – Michael
Langley, Lisa Leno and David
Lewis.
Tribal Election Day is Saturday,
Sept. 9. Ballots were scheduled
to be mailed to Tribal voters on
Wednesday, July 26. Candidate
statements appeared in the July
Tilixam Wawa, which was mailed
first class to Tribal members in
mid-July.
Three advisory votes
In addition to voting for three
Tribal Council candidates, Tribal
voters are being asked to weigh in
on three advisory votes with a com-
bined seven questions. A “yes” vote
means the voter is recommending
Tribal Council consider the specific
topic or action.
The first advisory question, which
is yes or no, asks if the Tribe should
consider investing in Elder mar-
ket-rate units in Tribal housing.
The second question asks if the
Tribe should consider investing in
the cannabis industry and gives
voters three options: medical mar-
ijuana, recreational marijuana or
hemp?
The final advisory vote asks if
constitutional enrollment require-
ments should be amended to do a
possible three things:
• Remove the requirement that the
applicant be born to a parent who
was a Tribal member at the time
of the applicant’s birth?
• Remove the requirement that the
applicant be born to a parent who
was a Tribal member at the time
the application is filed, if still
living?
• Or replace the requirement that
an applicant have 1/16th Grand
Ronde blood as defined as all
Indian blood derived from an
ancestor on the Restoration Roll
with the pre-1999 amendment re-
quirement that an applicant have
1/16th Indian blood and descend
from a member of the Tribe?
Elders schedule sewing classes
To find out more, attend a FREE Start Your Business class!
JOIN US at the Grand Ronde Adult Education Building
on the second Thursday of every month at 4PM
9615 Grand Ronde Road
Grand Ronde, OR
LEARN MORE AT:
WWW.meritnw.org
Or call 503 548-7314
Tribal Elders will be holding their next sewing classes from 10
a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 29, in the Elders Activity Center, 48940
Blacktail Drive.
Lunch will be available and the class is open to everyone, not just
Tribal members.
There will be a $10 fee for each class. Instructor is Susan Clark.
Participants are encouraged to bring their own sewing machine.
For more information and to sign up, contact Elders Activity Assis-
tant Dan Ham at 503-879-2233.
CTGR Annual Fish Distribution
Natural Resources Department
Fish Lab
47010 S.W. Hebo Road
Grand Ronde, Oregon 97347
503-879-2424
GRAND RONDE LIVING and ENROLLED TRIBAL
MEMBERS
Must show current photo I.D.
Thursday, Aug. 17, 2017 9 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Friday, Aug. 18, 2017 9 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Saturday, Aug. 19, 2017 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Elders will have a special line established to expediently fill their requests. To ensure this, only Elder
orders will be filled using this line. Thank you for understanding and consideration of others.
PORTLAND SATELLITE OFFICE DISTRIBUTION
Fish will not be available to those who do not preregister.
Thursday, Aug. 24, 2017 at 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Preregistration is required BEFORE Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2017 at 4 p.m.
Please contact Mary Leith to preregister for pick up. 503-879-2424
If picking up for others, a signed release AND copy of Tribal ID or CIB is required!
No early or late pickup
Fish will NOT be mailed
If you have any questions please call the Natural Resources Department 503-879-2424.
August 2017 Salmon Distribution Release
I
, roll number
give
,
permission to pick up my salmon.
Signature of Tribal member:
Date:
A copy of Tribal ID or CIB MUST accompany this Release. No Exceptions!
Ad created by George Valdez