MISSION, Ore. – On Tuesday, Nov. 14, members of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) elected six new members and six incumbents to the Board of Trustees and General Council to lead the tribe for the next two years.
The CTUIR’s governing body, the Board of Trustees will have four new members.
Gary I. Burke replaces N. Kathryn Brigham as BOT chair, while Aaron Ashley retained his seat as BOT vice chair.
Raymond Huesties will replace Sandra Sampson as BOT treasurer, while Roberta J. Wilson will replace Sally Kosey as BOT secretary. Three incumbent board members at large retained their seats: Toby Patrick, Corinne Sams and Lisa Ganuelas. Steven Hart was elected as the fourth board member at large.
Alan Crawford was elected the new General Council chair, defeating write-in candidate Boots Pond. Michael Ray Johnson retained his seat as General Council vice chair, and Martina Gordon won the General Council secretary seat as a write-in candidate. As for General Council interpreter, incumbent Thomas Morning Owl defeated Fred Hill Sr. Both were write-in candidates.
Pond, who is a BOT member at large, ran a write-in campaign for General Council chair after failing to properly file election paperwork for his at large seat. Current General Council Chair Lindsey X. Watchman did not seek re-election.
The elected officials take office Nov. 29 in a 9 a.m. ceremony at the Nixyáawii Governance Center. The public is invited to attend.
Following are the unofficial election results showing the number of votes received. The winners are identified with an asterisk, in bold. The certified results will be completed in accordance with the Election Code.
Board of Trustees Chair
*Gary I. Burke 371
N. Kathryn Brigham 338
Board of Trustees Vice Chair
*Aaron Ashley 438
Kola Thompson 274
Board of Trustees Treasurer
*Raymond Huesties 404
Sandra Sampson 325
Board of Trustees Secretary
*Roberta J. Wilson 368
Sally Kosey 329
Board of Trustees Members At Large
*Toby Patrick 496
*Steven Hart 362
*Corinne Sams 326
*Lisa Ganuelas 319
Matthew Farrow Jr. 290
Linda A. Sampson 229
Shawna Gavin 207
David Wolf Jr. 195
Cami Lewis 142
Victor Bates 141
Jesse Bevis Sr. 108
General Council Chair
*Alan Crawford 395
Boots Pond (Write-In) 254
General Council Vice Chair
*Michael R. Johnson 633
General Council Secretary
*Martina Gordon (Write-In) 125
Shawna Gavin (Write-In) 44
General Council Interpreter
*Thomas Morning Owl (WI) 177
Fred Hill Sr. (Write-In) 65
