By JOSEPH MARTIN
ONE FEATHER STAFF
With two months left for changes in the election law, a new election ordinance was introduced with changes proposed to the election code. With an ordinance passed in September, changes can be made to election laws until Dec. 31. The election year is now defined as Jan. 1 – Sept. 30 that a general election takes place, granting the Board of Elections three more months to make changes than it had before.
The proposed changes address ineligibility for office, particularly for those who’ve been impeached and removed from office. It also addresses the certification process, conducting recounts and runoffs, handling the filling of vacancies of offices, petitioning for referendums, early voting procedures, protests and irregularities, unlawful campaign activities and securing ballots and the Board of Elections’ offices.
The ordinance has a work session scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 13 and will likely come up in the Thursday, Dec. 6 Tribal Council session. However, one local citizen, who has said she’s running for principal chief, has already made comments and suggestions for the law.
Mary “Missy” Crowe called for allowing tribal members to petition for recall elections, civil and criminal penalties for violations and for the election board to hire its own legal counsel. “The three proposed amendments are issues that have been discussed and recommended to be written by past tribal administrations and tribal councils but were never done,” she said on her Facebook page. “If you support these three amendments, please call your tribal council representative and tell them, and then I encourage you to come to the work session and voice your support.”
