Cherokee Phoenix April 15th 2019

2019 ELECTION GUIDE

VOTING PRECINCTS

All colored Tribal Council districts have council, deputy chief and principal chief races this year. The gray districts show precincts that will only have deputy and principal chief voting. Elections for those Tribal Council districts were in 2017.

District 1

Sequoyah High School Cafeteria 17091 S. Muskogee Ave., Tahlequah Hulbert Community Building 316 Rider Lane, Hulbert Senior Citizen Center 3701 E. 75 St. N., Okay

District 2

Sequoyah High School Cafeteria 17091 S. Muskogee Ave., Tahlequah Tri-Community (W.E.B.) Association 17914 S. 580 Road, Tahlequah Lowrey Volunteer Fire Department 9775 Highway 82-A, Tahlequah

District 3

Sequoyah High School Cafeteria 17091 S. Muskogee Ave., Tahlequah Keys Community Building 19083 E. 840 Road, Park Hill

District 4

Fort Gibson Community Building 200 W. Poplar St., Fort Gibson Three Rivers Health Center 1001 S. 41st E., Muskogee

MAP: TERRY OSBURN

Warner Public School (Event Center) 1012 Fifth Ave., Warner

District 5

Gore Police and Fire Station 1201 N. Main, Gore

District 9

District 12

Vian Public School (BJ Traw Gym) 203 W. Hunter, Vian

Kenwood School (Cafeteria) 48625 S. 502 Road, Salina

HACN Keeler Heights 1003 S. Virginia Ave., Bartlesville

District 6

AMO Health Center 900 N. Owen Walter Blvd., Salina

VFW Post 7977 133169 N. Cincinnati Ave., Skiatook

Kansas High School Dome Kansas, Oklahoma

District 13

Redbird Health Center 301 S. J. T. Stites St., Sallisaw

United Methodist Church 2100 McGee Drive, Sallisaw Nicut/Belfonte Community Center 474894 State Hwy. 101, Muldrow Marble City Town Hall 120 A N. Main, Marble City

Sam Hider Health Center 859 E. Melton Drive, Jay

District 10

NO WE TA CN Community Center 1020 Lenape Drive, Nowata

American Legion Post 1 1120 E. Eighth St., Tulsa

Sam Hider Health Center 859 E. Melton Drive, Jay

HACN Complex 310 Chief Stand Waite Drive, Catoosa

Muldrow High School Cafeteria 715 W. Shawntel Smith Blvd., Muldrow

AMO Health Center 900 N. Owen Walter Blvd., Salina

Veterans Community Center 903 W. Main, Collinsville

District 7

Afton City Hall 201 S.W. First St., Afton

District 14

Wilma P. Mankiller Health Center 471688 Hwy. 51, Stilwell Westville School (Cafeteria) 500 W. Chincapin, Westville Lyons Switch Community Association 463101 E. 914 Road, Bunch NOAC Chewey Community Building 64741 S. 4645 Road, Watts

District 8

Wilma P. Mankiller Health Center 471688 Hwy. 51, Stilwell Westville School (Cafeteria) 500 W. Chincapin, Westville Bell Public School 88963 S. 4729 Road, Stilwell

Grove Community Center 104 W. Third St., Grove Spavinaw City Hall 119 S. Main, Spavinaw Graham Community Building 6 N. Adair, Pryor

District 11

Cherokee Nation Health Center 27371 S. 4410 Road, Vinita Gateway Assembly of God Church 440 W. 10th St., Welch Native American Fellowship Inc. 215 Oklahoma St., South Coffeyville

HACN Claremore 23205 S. Hwy. 66, Claremore Boys & Girls Club 119 N. Ash St., Chelsea Oologah Assembly of God Church 13462 S. 169 Hwy, Oologah

District 15

Cherokee Elder Rainbow House 101 Market Place, Locust Grove Graham Community Building 6 N. Adair, Pryor AMO Health Center 900 N. Owen Walter Blvd., Salina HACN Claremore 23205 S. Hwy. 66, Claremore

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ELECTION • ᏗᏙᎩᏯᏍᏗ

CHEROKEE PHOENIX • ELECTION GUIDE

ᏣᎳᎩ ᏧᎴᎯᏌᎤᎯ • ᏧᏬᏂ 15, 2019

ABSENTEE VS. IN-PERSON

VOTING

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hether Cherokee Nation citizens are voting absentee or in person, there are different steps to take for each. The first step for citizens to take for both would be to make sure they are registered to vote with the Cherokee Nation’s Election Commission.

According to an EC press release, the deadline to register to vote in the June 1 general election, as well as any necessary July 27 runoffs, was March 29.

Absentee Absentee ballot application forms and can be picked up at the CNEC offices at 17763 S. Muskogee Ave. or can be downloaded from www. cherokee.org/elections and will be accepted until April 19 by either fax (918-458-6101) or email (election-commission@ cherokee.org).

According to the release, the EC will begin mailing absentee ballots to eligible voters on April 30. Voters “must return the voted ballot” to the EC by mail or to the “Personal Delivery” box located within the Election Commission Office from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on May 25 and from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on May 28-30.

If eligible voters who requested an absentee ballot did not receive one, the EC suggests they report the problem to the EC. According to the EC calendar, the last day to mail replacement ballots is May 30.

EC officials said early walkin voting, which is another form of absentee voting, is from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on May 25, May 28-30.

“A two-member absentee voting board will be on duty each day…to assist absentee voters,” the EC release states.

If voters choose this route, when they arrive at the Election Commission Office they will be prompted to fill out an

CANDIDATES

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ARCHIVE Cherokee Nation citizens cast early walk-in votes on June 23, 2015, in the tribe’s previous Election Commission Office in Tahlequah. CN citizens can cast ballots at their respective precincts, at the EC Office during early walk-in voting or by absentee ballots. “application form” and are “required to swear” they have not voted by regular mail absentee ballot and that they will not vote at their designated polling places on election day.

The release states once the voter’s information is verified they would be directed to the “in-person” absentee board, which will issue the ballot.

In-person If citizens are voting in-person, they can vote from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on June 1 at their designated precinct. If an eligible voter is in line at 7 p.m. they

will be “entitled to vote,” the release states.

EC officials said they recommend citizens bring their voter identification card when voting.

“Your voter identification card can help precinct officials find your name in the Precinct Signature Book, and it may also help them resolve the problem if you are not listed in the Precinct Signature Book,” the release states.

If a voter’s name is not found in the PSB, or if a voter disagrees with the information in

the book, EC officials suggest the voter cast a “challenged ballot.”

“A challenged ballot is sealed in a special envelope and counted after the challenged ballots are returned to the CNEC office if the voter’s information can be verified by the Cherokee (Nation) Election Commission,” the release states.

If citizens make a mistake when filling out their ballot they should not try to fix the mistake but follow the spoiled ballot procedure. By doing this, a precinct official will issue

a new ballot to the voter, the release states.

The release states voters will receive their voter identification card in April and it will list the voter’s precinct location.

To verify if a voter is in the correct precinct, call 918-4585899 or 1-800-353-2895.

In-person voters can also vote early at the Election Commission Office from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on May 25 and May 28-30.

STAFF REPORTS

BALLOT POSITIONING

herokee Nation candidates headed to the June 1 general election will be listed on the ballot based upon a drawing held in March by the Election Commission.

The process was handled during an EC meeting on March 18. Election officials drew names randomly from a foam cup in front of commissioners, their attorney, other election staff and audience members.

Before election law was changed, Elections Director Connie Parnell said, candidates or their proxies were allowed to draw for the ballot order. That practice ended in 2013.

“It was a big show more than anything,” Parnell said. “Not everybody got to be here, so a few got to make those decisions.”

The victor of this year’s principal chief race will replace outgoing chief Bill John Baker, whose term is expiring. The ballot order for that race is Chuck Hoskin Jr., Dick Lay and David Walkingstick. A fourth candidate, California resident Rhonda Brown-Fleming, was tossed because she lives outside the CN jurisdiction, a specific requirement for the job.

Hoskin, of Vinita, is a former tribal councilor and the former CN secretary of state. He resigned from his CN position to run for office, as required by law.

Lay, of Ochelata, is the current Dist. 12 councilor.

Walkingstick, of Tahlequah, is the current Dist. 3

councilor. The terms of both candidates will reach their limits this year.

Candidates in the deputy chief race will be listed as Bryan Warner then Meredith Frailey. They are running to replace S. Joe Crittenden, whose term is expiring. Candidate Linda Sacks, of Muskogee, withdrew from the race in February.

Warner, of Sallisaw, is the current Dist. 6 councilor.

Frailey, of Locust Grove, is a former council speaker.

Ballot listings for district races will be as follows: District 1: Ryan Sierra and Rex Jordan (incumbent); District 3: RJ Robbins, Debra Proctor, Jim Cosby, Brandon Girty, Billy Flint, Larry Dean Pritchett and Wes Nofire; District 6: Ron Goff, Gary Trad Lattimore and Daryl Legg; District 8: Ralph F. Keen II, Jodie Fishinghawk and Shawn Crittenden (incumbent); District 12: Don Scott, Phyllis Lay, Dora L. Smith Patzkowski and Todd M. Branstetter; District 13: Joe Deere; District 14; Cara Cowan Watts and Keith Austin (incumbent); and At-Large: Steve Adair, Johnny Jack Kidwell, Julia Coates, Wanda Hatfield (incumbent) and Pamela Fox. The Dist. 13 race initially included longtime Tribal Councilor Buel Anglen. Deere challenged Anglen’s

eligibility to run based on term limits. The EC deemed Anglen ineligible to run again. He appealed to the Supreme Court, which agreed with the EC. The March placement drawing was initially planned for February, Parnell said.

“The appeal process pushed it all back,” she said.

“But everything’s pretty much back on track.”

Larry J. Sabato, director of the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics, wrote that ballot order and its effect on the outcome “has long fascinated political scientists.”

“The advantage for first-listed candidates varies widely,” he says in an analysis of research essays on the topic. “In some elections a first-listing produces just a handful of votes, though they can make the difference in an extremely close election. In other elections a first-listing can generate extra votes up to about 5 percent of the overall tally, according to some studies.”

In 2003 and 2007, first-listed candidate Chad Smith was elected principal chief. He faced three challengers in 2003 and one four years later. Listed in the first of two spots in 2011, Smith lost to Baker following a recount and special election. Baker defended his seat four years later while listed second on a ballot of four.

CHAD HUNTER Reporter

ELECTION • ᏗᏙᎩᏯᏍᏗ

ELECTION GUIDE • CHEROKEE PHOENIX

ENSURING THE PROCESS

ᏧᏬᏂ 15, 2019 • ᏣᎳᎩ ᏧᎴᎯᏌᎤᎯ

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WATCHERS

WILL CHAVEZ/CHEROKEE PHOENIX Stoney Eagle, of Cherry Tree, signs his name to receive his ballot to vote in the 2015 Cherokee Nation general election at the Stilwell precinct. The Election Commission is required to be nonpartisan, and its duties include staffing polling sites with reliable personnel and allowing voting procedures to be observed.

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ith the Cherokee Nation’s general election looming, the competition to win votes can get contentious between campaigns. Voters have their favorite candidates and sometimes voice suspicions about how the elections are handled. However, the Election Commission is required to be nonpartisan, and its duties include staffing polling sites with reliable personnel and allowing voting procedures to be observed.

Among those present at precincts on election day are “watchers,” who ensure that regulations are properly followed.

“They undergo three hours of training,” Elections Director Connie Parnell said. “I have been teaching two of those courses each Saturday. It used to be that they all had to come here for training, but now it’s offered in the districts. I was just in Jay, and before that I was in Claremore. Next I go to Nowata and then to Sallisaw.”

Legislative Act 12-16, which governs elections, states that watchers cannot be any candidate for CN elective office or an incumbent. Erstwhile principal chiefs, deputy chiefs and tribal councilors are also ineligible to serve.

“The selection of the watchers and their designated precincts shall be by random drawing of names

ARCHIVE In this 2015 photo, Rain Thompson, of Hulbert, signs in at the Hulbert Community Building to cast her votes in the Cherokee Nation general election. A poll worker helps Thomspon sign in and get her ballot.

The Election Commission trains each poll worker for the tribe’s elections.

submitted by candidates for each respective district to be assigned within those districts,” the act states.

“The Election Commission shall have the sole authority to determine the number of watchers in any given precinct.”

Regulations also address watchers for absentee balloting. Six absentee watchers and two alternate watchers are selected for “each day that absentee declarations are examined and on the day of the election.”

No absentee watcher can serve for more than one day.

Absentee watchers are also selected at random from a pool of names submitted by candidates. A candidate submits a list when filing for office.

On election day, watchers are entitled to observe the ballot box, the counting device and printouts from the device. Watchers can make observations before, during and after balloting hours. They may be commissioned to observe any testing of the counting devices and to accompany anyone assigned to repair or maintain machines during the election period.

While observing machine maintenance or repair, the watcher is expected not to interrupt, but keep a written record of the work.

Tribal voting regulations state that a watcher “is an observer only.” They may only talk with the precinct inspector or EC members about possible irregulari-

ties, which the inspector or commission member is expected to address.

Watchers may not carry a cell phone or other electronic device, cannot receive or make phone calls and must be present at the polling site from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Any watcher who leaves during those hours will not be allowed to return.

When balloting is completed, the watchers are expected to stay at their respective precincts until all work is finished and the inspector is ready to return the election materials.

If a watcher has any complaints, questions or allegations of irregularities, a precinct worker can be asked to call the EC. Watchers can also call attention to violations of “electioneering” regulations.

“Of course, they know that there can be no campaign literature, signs or stickers,” Parnell said.

Candidates running for office cannot have signs within 300 feet of polling sites, and no person can promote a candidate within the same distance. Articles of clothing, buttons, flyers and other “swag” often handed out to promote political campaigns are prohibited at polls.

D. SEAN ROWLEY Senior Reporter

ARCHIVE In this 2015 photo, a Cherokee Nation citizen casts his ballot at the precinct in Kansas, Oklahoma, while precinct workers in the background man the polling place. Poll workers ensure that tribal election regulations are followed properly.

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ELECTION • ᏗᏙᎩᏯᏍᏗ

CHEROKEE PHOENIX • ELECTION GUIDE

ᏣᎳᎩ ᏧᎴᎯᏌᎤᎯ • ᏧᏬᏂ 15, 2019

FROM START TO FINISH

BALLOT SECURITY

F

rom an election ballot’s beginning at an off-site printer to its eventual home inside a vault, security plays a role in every step along the way, Cherokee Nation election officials said.

“We have a good policy to follow,” Elections Director Connie Parnell said.

In the CN, a ballot’s life cycle begins at an outside, certified printer. Ballots are designed specifically for the CN’s election equipment.

“They can only be fed through and read one time,” Parnell said. “You cannot take it out and try to feed it in again. The equipment knows it has been through.”

The Election Commission Office is having printed an estimated 80,000 ballots for the June 1 general election to accommodate the 73,000-plus registered voters and new voters who registered before the March 29 deadline.

There are multiple ways to cast a ballot, including absentee, early or at the polls on election day. At the polls, an election inspector will be stationed at each of the 51 precincts.

“They are responsible for the conduct at the precincts.

Plus they are the ones that pick up all of the equipment and supplies on the Friday before,” Parnell said.

Inspectors are also charged with transporting ballots and equipment to the EC Office in Tahlequah on election night.

“They will physically bring everything back sealed and locked,” Parnell said.

At the EC Office on election night, security and CN marshals will be on hand.

“Everything comes through the front doors,” Parnell said.

“In order to leave space for our precinct officials to come in, we will have traffic conductors out there.”

Voters have until April 19 to request an absentee ballot.

“We have a form for them to request,” Parnell said. “On that form it says where they

ATTENDANCE

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want the ballots mailed to.”

Absentee ballots will be mailed out on April 30 and May 1. Absentee ballots are secured within three envelopes, Parnell said.

“You vote your ballot,” she said. “It goes into a secrecy envelope. The secrecy envelope then is sealed and placed inside the affidavit envelope. The affidavit envelope is executed in front of a notary; the voter signs in front of a notary.”

The affidavit envelope, Parnell said, is then sealed in a postage-paid “outer return envelope.” Absentee ballots dropped off at the EC Office are secured inside a vault, while mailed absentee ballots end up at the post office in Tahlequah.

“They are secured in locked, sealed boxes at the post office until the week before the election,” Parnell said.

Marcus Fears, EC administrator, said security staff or CN marshals oversee all transactions between the post office and EC Office.

“They escort us there or they follow us there,” Fears said. “They actually go into the post office with us and check the box.”

Absentee ballots remain at the post office until the Monday before the election. Once absentee ballots are escorted to the EC Office, “We have security here at all times,” Parnell said.

“Everything is locked within the vault, which is under surveillance at all times,” she said. “There are cameras inside and outside. It takes three people to get in it – a commissioner and two staff or any combination of the three – just as long as there is at least one commissioner.”

Barcodes on the outside of absentee envelopes are scanned to give voters credit for voting, but the actual votes themselves are not counted until after 7 p.m. on election day.

CHAD HUNTER Reporter

CHAD HUNTER/CHEROKEE PHOENIX Security plays a role in every step of the election process, according to Cherokee Nation Election Commission officials. Ballots are designed specifically for the Cherokee Nation’s election equipment.

ARCHIVE In this 2015 photo, Cherokee Nation Election Commission Director Connie Parnell inserts a sample ballot into one of the EC’s voting machines during a test run at the tribe’s Election Commission Office in Tahlequah.

ARCHIVE Cherokee Nation Election Commission Director Connie Parnell fills in a sample ballot to be inserted into an E-scan voting machine in 2015.

“You vote your ballot. It goes into a secrecy envelope. The secrecy envelope then is sealed and placed inside the affidavit envelope. The affidavit envelope is executed in front of a notary; the voter signs in front of a notary.”

Connie Parnell, Elections Director

ROLL CALL, PLEASE

uring the past two years, a trio of Cherokee Nation tribal councilors achieved perfect attendance at more than 150 monthly and committee meetings.

“When you raise your hand and take the oath, you’re telling everybody this is priority No. 1,” former principal chief and current Dist. 2 Tribal Councilor Joe Byrd said.

Between April 10, 2017, and March 11, 2019, records show that Byrd, Dist. 5 Tribal Councilor E.O. “Jr.” Smith and Dist. 15 Tribal Councilor Janees Taylor had perfect attendance at monthly council meetings, as well as at their respective committee meetings.

“I schedule everything around these meetings,” Taylor said. “I feel like we owe it to our constituents to be there and on time.”

Records show that Smith attended 131 committee meetings and 23 council meetings; Taylor 158 committee and 27 council meetings; and Byrd 159 committee and 27 council meetings.

Dist. 9 Tribal Councilor Mike Shambaugh and Dist.

11 Tribal Councilor Victoria Vazquez made all of their respective monthly council meetings. The newest

councilor, Canaan Duncan, is also noted as having perfect attendance, but did not join the council until 2019.

Missing the most meetings was At-Large Councilor

Wanda Hatfield. She hit 85 percent (134 of 158 committee meetings and 23 of 27 council meetings).

Monthly tribal council meetings are scheduled for the first Monday after the second Saturday. For attendance purposes, special council meetings are also included. Committee meetings are a combination of all seven standing legislative committees – Community Service, Culture, Education, Executive & Finance, Health, Resources and Rules. Council representatives declined to provide statistics for tardiness, and only provided statistics for attendance.

During the previous two-year stretch, Aug. 14, 2015, to March 21, 2017, nine of the 17 tribal councilors made all 19 council meetings, but none made all of their respective committee meetings, which ranged from 123 to 129 depending on the councilor.

Tribal councilors are elected by popular vote to fouryear terms. Fifteen legislators are elected to represent the districts within the tribe’s 14-county jurisdictional boundaries while two At-Large councilors are elected to represent CN citizens living outside the boundaries.

CHAD HUNTER Reporter

ᏧᏬᏂ 15, 2019 • ᏣᎳᎩ ᏧᎴᎯᏌᎤᎯ

Cherokee Phoenix APRIL 15, 2019 Volume 43, No. 8

ELECTION • ᏗᏙᎩᏯᏍᏗ

ELECTION GUIDE • CHEROKEE PHOENIX

5

TO DO & NOT TO DO

VOTING TIPS

The Cherokee Phoenix is published monthly by the Cherokee Nation, PO Box 948, Tahlequah, OK 74465.

Application to mail at Periodicals postage rates is pending at Tahlequah, OK 74464.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Cherokee Phoenix, PO Box 948, Tahlequah, OK 74465

A

ccording to the Title 26 Election Law Section 52, candidates and campaigners must follow a code of conduct pertaining to electioneering at voting precincts on Election Day for the 2019 election.

Electioneering is the act of engaging in a political election or campaign for the success of a particular candidate or party.

The following are the dos and don’ts of electioneering at voting sites: · No person is allowed to electioneer inside any precinct or within 300 feet outside the precinct entrance while an election is in process, · Prohibited activities which may be interpreted as electioneering include: wearing any article of clothing with a candidate’s name or office on it; holding any article such as signs with a candidate’s name or office on it; distributing or displaying written material, campaign literature, or campaign items of any nature within the specified area unless provided by Election Commission officials, · Only precinct officials or other authorized persons are allowed to ap-

Editorial Staff Brandon Scott

Executive Editor brandon-scott@cherokee.org 918-453-5000 ext 7258

Travis Snell

Assistant Editor travis-snell@cherokee.org 918-453-5358

Will Chavez

Assistant Editor will-chavez@cherokee.org 918-207-3961

Mark Dreadfulwater

Multimedia Editor mark-dreadfulwater@cherokee.org 918-453-5087

Reporters

proach the ballot box while an election is in process, and · No person is allowed to obstruct or hinder a voter’s access to a polling place including any entrances or exits being used by voter’s vehicles to travel to and from the polling place.

Any use of the official website of the Cherokee Nation, the Cherokee Nation intranet, employee address list or office phone extensions is prohibited for use of political purposes. Candidates or other persons violating this rule will be assessed a civil penalty for each occurrence.

Any candidate, voter, or other person who is a citizen of the Cherokee Nation or citizen of a federally recognized Indian tribe who violates the requirements or prohibitions of the Title 26 Election Law Section 52 is “guilty of a crime” and subject to removal by local law enforcement and/or the Cherokee Nation Marshal Service at the request of Election Commission officials or other authorized precinct officials.

LINDSEY BARK Reporter

D. Sean Rowley

Senior Reporter david-rowley@cherokee.org 918-453-5560

Lindsey Bark

Reporter lindsey-bark@cherokee.org 918-453-5000 ext 4223

Chad Hunter

Reporter chad-hunter@cherokee.org 918-453-5000 ext 7256

Grant Neugin

Reporter grant-neugin@cherokee.org 918-453-5000 ext 7365

Multimedia Staff Roger Graham

Multimedia Producer roger-graham@cherokee.org 918-207-3969

Administrative Staff Dena Tucker

Administrative Officer dena-tucker@cherokee.org 918-453-5324

Joy Rollice

Administrative Assistant joy-rollice@cherokee.org 918-453-5269

Samantha Cochran

Advertising Specialist samantha-cochran@cherokee.org 918-207-3825

DEBATE TIME

CHEROKEE PHOENIX

T

he Cherokee Phoenix is hosting two debates – one for deputy chief candidates and one for principal chief candidates – beginning at 6 p.m. on April 16 at Northeastern State University.

The debates will be held in the auditorium of the W. Roger Webb Educational Technology Center.

Doors will open at 5 p.m., and the deputy chief debate will begin at 6 p.m.

This year there are two candidates running for the Cherokee Nation’s deputy chief office: Meredith Frailey, of Locust Grove; and Bryan Warner, of Sallisaw.

The winner will replace Deputy Chief S. Joe Crittenden.

After the deputy chief candidates’ debate and a short intermission, the principal chief candidates’ debate will begin at 7:30 p.m. This year’s principal chief’s race

is between Chuck Hoskin Jr., of Vinita; Dick Lay, of Ochelata; and David Walkingstick, of Tahlequah. The winner will replace Principal Chief Bill John Baker.

Dylan Goforth, editor in chief of The Frontier, a nonprofit journalism group in Oklahoma, will moderate the debates. The Cherokee Phoenix staff will formulate all debate questions, and no candidate will have prior access to the questions.

Seating in the auditorium will be firstcome, first-serve. The debate will also be streamed live at www.cherokeephoenix. org and Rogers State University TV at https://rsu.tv.

The Cherokee Phoenix has previously hosted three similar debates in 2007, 2011 and 2015.

STAFF REPORTS

April 15: Candidate Financials Due April 19: Absentee Ballot Request Deadline April 30: Mail Absentee Ballots May 1: Mail Absentee Ballots May 14: Election Commission Meeting May 15: Candidate Financials Due May 25-30: Early Walk-In Voting (7 a.m.7 p.m.)

June 1: General Election (7 a.m.- 7 p.m.)

June 3-5: Request for Recount June 6-7: Recount by Election Commission and Supreme Court June 10: Election Appeals Deadline with Supreme Court June 11: Election Commission Meeting June 11-13: Supreme Court Hearing and Results

Terris Howard

Advertising Representative terris-howard@cherokee.org 918-453-5743

June 15: Candidate Financials Due

Justin Smith

June 17: Absentee Request for Runoff Election June 24-25: Mail Runoff Absentee Ballots

Distribution Specialist justin-smith@cherokee.org 918-207-4975

Editorial Board

July 9: Election Commission Meeting

Lauren Jones Cusick Kendra McGeady Maxie Thompson Brenda Thompson Ceciley Thomason-Murphy

July 15: Candidate Financials Due

Cherokee Phoenix P.O. Box 948 Tahlequah, OK 74465 (918) 453-5269 FAX: (918) 207-0049 1-800-256-0671 www.cherokeephoenix.org ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTIONS Within the United States: $15 for one year Please contact us at the number above to subscribe.

Mail subscriptions and changes of address to the Cherokee Phoenix, P.O. Box 948, Tahlequah, OK 74465, phone 918-207-4975. Please include the words “Change of Address” or “Subscription” on the envelope.

Back Issues may be purchased for $2.50 postage and handling. Please inquire to make sure the issues are in stock by writing to Back Issues, Cherokee Phoenix, P.O. Box 948, Tahlequah, OK 74465; or calling 918-207-4975.

Copyright 2018: The entire contents of the Cherokee Phoenix are fully protected by copyright unless otherwise noted and may be reproduced if the copyright is noted and credit is given to the Cherokee Phoenix, the writer and the photographer. Requests to reprint should be directed to the editor at the above address. Material provided through membership with Associated Press NewsFinder, identified by (AP), may not be reproduced without permission of the Associated Press.

Member

2019 Election Timeline

Oklahoma Press Association

Native American Journalists Association

July 23-25: Early Walk-In Voting (7 a.m.- 7 p.m.)

July 25: Last Day to Mail Replacement Absentee Ballot July 27: Runoff Election (7 a.m.-7 p.m.)

ARCHIVE Former Tribal Councilor Lee Keener, right, addresses a question while Deputy Chief S. Joe Crittenden looks on during the Cherokee Phoenix’s deputy chief debate in 2015 at Northeastern State University in Tahlequah. The Cherokee Phoenix will host this year’s debate on April 16 at NSU.

July 29-31: Request for Recount Aug. 1-2: Recount by Election Commission and Supreme Court Aug. 5: Election Appeals Deadline with Supreme Court Aug. 6-8: Supreme Court Hearing and Results Aug. 9: Final Candidate Financial Report Due Aug. 13: Election Commission Meeting Aug. 14: Swear In Elected Officials Aug. 15: Revised Candidate Financials Due

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ELECTION • ᏗᏙᎩᏯᏍᏗ

EVERY VOTE COUNTS

CHEROKEE PHOENIX • ELECTION GUIDE

ᏣᎳᎩ ᏧᎴᎯᏌᎤᎯ • ᏧᏬᏂ 15, 2019

ELECTION HISTORY

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he 2011 principal chief’s race showed that every vote counts and having election checks in place is important. That year, the principal chief was not sworn in until October as votes were recounted and a court hearing was held to try to decide the disputed race.

On June 25, 2011, the day of the election, only eight votes separated then-Principal Chief Chad Smith from Tribal Councilor Bill John Baker.

In unofficial results at 7 p.m., Baker led the race by approximately 600 votes, but as the night passed and absentee ballots were counted, Smith, who had served as principal chief for 12 years, closed that gap.

About 9:30 p.m., Baker was unofficially leading Smith by 47 votes and told his supporters the Election Commission was experiencing a “glitch” in counting votes. About one hour later he addressed his supporters and told them he was losing by 22 votes.

The EC said about 250 challenged ballots needed to be studied and counted as of late Saturday night, pushing the results in to Sunday. As of late Saturday night, Smith had 7,572 votes to Baker’s 7,564.

The next morning, the EC showed Baker had won by 11 votes. However, when the EC certified the results the next day, Smith was named the winner by seven votes. On June 28, Baker filed for emergency injunctive relief with the tribe’s Supreme Court to force the EC to provide answers and documentation as to why the unofficial results in the race changed.

On June 29, the EC motioned to dismiss Baker’s request. But on June 30, the Supreme Court ordered the EC to recount the ballots by hand that afternoon. After the EC completed at 9:30 p.m., it showed Baker having 7,613 votes and Smith having 7,347 votes, a margin of 266 votes. The next day Smith petitioned for a recount using machines, and on July 5, he asked the court to vacate the certified June 30 recount.

On July 7, Baker motioned to intervene in Smith’s appeal, and the next day the court heard testimony regarding the recount. Election commissioners testified the recount procedures were correct but the results were wrong.

On July 10, the court heard testimony that Automated Election Services President Terry Rainey entered the EC vault on June 27 and removed envelopes. One envelope contained a tally sheet for the race. He testified he “annotated” the tally sheet, changing a number from 37 to 57 to properly reflect the tallied count. Baker’s attorney argued Rainey’s annotation changed the race and allowed Smith to win the race with 7,609 votes to Baker’s 7,602 votes. The previous totals were 7,600 to 7,589 in Baker’s favor.

On July 12, the court ordered a recount of all ballots for July 16 with the court supervising the count and the Baker and Smith parties observing. The recount concluded on July 17, and the next day the court ordered the hearing to reconvene on July 19. At the hearing, the court released the evidentiary count num-

bers: 7,627 for Smith and 7,622 for Baker, including challenged ballots.

On July 21, the court invalidated all results, citing that a winner couldn’t be determined with “mathematical certainty.”

On July 28, Smith set Sept. 24 as the special election date for the principal chief’s race. Newly elected Deputy Chief S. Joe Crittenden assumed the principal chief’s position on Aug. 14 until a new principal chief could be sworn in after the special election. After the special election, results showed Baker received 10,703 votes to Smith’s 9,128 votes. Baker was sworn in on the back steps of the CN Capitol in downtown the evening of Oct. 19, and an inauguration was held Nov. 6 at Sequoyah High School.

The two men faced off again for principal chief in the June 27, 2015, general election, but this time Baker received 52.66 percent of the vote or 9,786 votes, while Smith got 28.06 percent of the vote or 5,124 votes. State Representative Will Fourkiller finished third with 10.49 percent or 1,950 votes, and the former director the of the tribe’s Community Services Department, Charlie Soap, finished last with 8.79 percent of the vote or 1,633 votes.

Having served two consecutive terms, Baker is terming out of office and will leave in August after a new principal chief is sworn in on Aug. 14.

WILL CHAVEZ Assistant Editor

WILL CHAVEZ/CHEROKEE PHOENIX Former Tribal Councilor Bill John Baker took the oath of office the evening of Oct. 19, 2011, to officially become the principal chief of the Cherokee Nation. Standing with him was his wife Sherry. Supreme Court Justice James G. Wilcoxen administered the oath of office.

ARCHIVE Then-Principal Chief Chad Smith holds a June 27, 2011, press conference.

The Election Commission released results after the conference showing Smith winning the election over Bill John Baker. Baker won the chief’s race after another election was held.

WILL CHAVEZ/CHEROKEE PHOENIX A Recount Certification tally sheet hangs on the door of the Election Services Office on June 30, 2011, after a recount in the principal chief’s race was conducted.

ELECTION • ᏗᏙᎩᏯᏍᏗ

USE IT OR LOSE IT

ᏧᏬᏂ 15, 2019 • ᏣᎳᎩ ᏧᎴᎯᏌᎤᎯ

STATE VOTERS PURGE

ELECTION GUIDE • CHEROKEE PHOENIX

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Oklahoma Watch is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that produces in-depth and investigative stories on important issues facing the state.

For more Oklahoma Watch content, go to oklahomawatch.org.

WHITNEY BRYEN/OKLAHOMA WATCH Voters cast their ballots for the 2018 general election at the McClain County Election Board in Purcell. Election officials are gearing up to remove tens of thousands of Oklahomans from the state’s voter rolls – a controversial practice voting-rights advocates say can lead to disenfranchised voters.

E

lection officials are gearing up to remove tens of thousands of Oklahomans from the state’s voter rolls – a controversial practice voting-rights advocates say can lead to disenfranchised voters.

Oklahoma is one of seven states that allow election officials to remove names from the state’s voter registration list if they haven’t voted in several election cycles and don’t respond to address confirmation mailings.

That process, which is done every two years in Oklahoma, will begin this April. If it’s like the last voter purge in 2017, a sizable portion of the state’s nearly 2.2 million registered voters will come off the rolls.

A list obtained by Oklahoma Watch from the state Election Board shows that 291,233 names were deleted since 2017. Of that amount, more than half were deleted due to inactivity. The purge of inactive voters occurs in April in every odd year.

State Election Secretary Paul Ziriax said deleting the names of inactive voters helps maintain the integrity of elections by ensuring that registration lists are accurate and up to date.

He added that voters are only removed due to inactivity after a multistep process.

This includes when someone hasn’t voted for four general-election cycles, covering an eight-year period, and does not respond to the address confirmation notice the state sends out before listing a voter as “inactive.”

But legal challenges, controversies in other states and a new push by congressional Democrats to ban so-called “use-it-or-lose-it” voting laws has put the issue under renewed scrutiny.

“Voting should never be a use it or lose it,” said Leigh Chapman, voting rights program director for the Conference on Civil and Human Rights, a Washington D.C.-based nonprofit that lobbies for civil rights laws. “It’s a right,

and we should be making it easier to vote, not harder.”

How Voters Are Removed Through a largely automated process, the state Election Board constantly updates voter rolls when someone moves, dies, is convicted of a felony or is certified as mentally incapacitated.

The process for removing inactive voters begins in the spring following a general election.

Before June 1, the state will send the address confirmation to voters who haven’t cast a ballot in either of the last two general elections or any state or local elections in that time period.

If the voter doesn’t respond within 60 days of receiving the letter, they are put on “inactive status” but are still cleared to vote. The voter can regain their active status at any time by voting in any election or updating their voter registration information.

But if the voter, while on inactive status, doesn’t participate in an election for two more general election cycles, their voter registration will be purged and they will need to re-register if they want to vote again.

That means the voters purged this year didn’t vote in 2012 or 2014 elections, didn’t respond to the address confirmation letter and haven’t voted since.

The essentially eight-year period is longer than many of the six states that have similar laws. Ohio and Georgia, for example, allow officials to purge voters after a six-year period of inactivity.

Ziriax said the state’s lengthier process gives voters ample opportunities to retain their voting status and voters are regularly reminded to double-check before registration deadlines to make sure they are eligible to vote.

He added that the benefit of cleaning rolls and removing those who are unlikely to vote protects election integrity.

“Voter fraud is exceptionally rare in Oklahoma and not a major issue here,” Ziriax said. “But for someone who want-

ed to commit fraud, the less updated your voter records are, the easier it is to do that.”

But without fail, there will be some voters who had been purged go to vote with the assumption they are still eligible and will be turned away.

“There will be someone who says they last voted for Bill Clinton or George H.W. Bush in 1992 and they’re not registered any more and they want to know why,” Ziriax said. “But I can’t control that and I can’t control what the law says.”

Oklahoma and the other states with use-it-or-lose-it voting laws faced a threat last year when the U.S. Supreme Court took up a case seeking to overturn Ohio’s law. The court, in a 5-4 decision, ruled that Ohio’s law did not violate the National Voting Right Act, allowing them to continue removing voters.

The issue was further pushed into the spotlight last year when Georgia purged hundreds of thousands of voters ahead of its contentious gubernatorial election, which Republican Brian Kemp ended up winning by a slim margin over Democrat Stacey Abrams.

In that case, as well as with other voting purges, critics argued the policy disproportionally hurts minority and Democratic voters.

Chapman said this is likely because minority groups tend to move more – raising the chance that they never received the address confirmation notice – and have faced voter suppression issues in the past.

Democrats Most Affected A review of Oklahoma’s purge of inactive voters in 2017 shows that Democrats were disproportionally affected.

Of the 167,011 who were deleted due to inactivity, about 46 percent were Democrats. Voter registration statistics before the purge, on Jan. 1, 2017, show that Democrats made up about 39 percent of all registered voters.

Republicans, meanwhile, made up

about 33 percent of the purged inactive voters while making up nearly 46 percent of the pre-purge registration totals.

University of Oklahoma political science professor Keith Gaddie suggested one of the reasons Democrats are more likely to be purged due to inactivity is because “many elderly voters who start to become less prone to vote are more likely to be Democrats.”

Also, he added, “Low-propensity voters are more likely to end up purged, and they also tend to more often be independents and Democrats.”

With the regular purging, the total number of registered voters tends to increase in even years, when state elections occur, and fall in odd years.

In January 2008, there were 2,022,537 registered voters, slightly more than the 2,016,157 in January 2018 despite population growth, state Election Board data shows.

Various factors can affect overall and party totals in voter registration. Registered Democrats have dropped by 24 percent while Republicans have gained by 19 percent over the period.

Purging Ban Proposed Congressional Democrats are seeking to pass a federal law that would ban states from removing voters due to inactivity.

The bill with language to ban removal of voters because of inactivity passed the Democratic-led U.S. House earlier this year, but Senate Republicans have signaled they will not hear it.

Chapman said she hopes the Senate will reconsider and take up the proposal. But, if there are no changes on the state or federal level, she urged voters to be proactive and make sure they are registered before voting.

“Voting is a right,” she said. “And people should have every ability to cast their ballot and have it counted.”

TREVOR BROWN Oklahoma Watch

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CHEROKEE PHOENIX • ELECTION GUIDE

ELECTION • ᏗᏙᎩᏯᏍᏗ

DICK LAY

ᏣᎳᎩ ᏧᎴᎯᏌᎤᎯ • ᏧᏬᏂ 15, 2019