FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) - A former two-term Navajo Nation president is making another run at the office, while a bill in the Tribal Council threatens to cut his aspirations short.
Joe Shirley Jr. told The Associated Press he will file for the tribal presidency Thursday, which marks the start of a monthlong period for Navajo presidential and legislative hopefuls to declare candidacy. Shirley sought a third consecutive term in 2010 but was barred by tribal law that states Navajo presidents are limited to two back-to-back terms.
Shirley could face another challenge in legislation moving through the Tribal Council that would further define term limits. Delegate Russell Begaye is sponsoring the bill to bar any tribal president who has served two terms, consecutive or not, from running again. It’s unclear whether the legislation that also would limit tribal lawmakers to four terms would apply retroactively.
Begaye said the legislation doesn’t target anyone in particular but is aimed at giving a new generation of potential leaders a better shot against incumbents or well-known politicians. Shirley doesn’t see it that way. He’s the only former two-term Navajo president or chairman who expressed a desire to run before the bill was introduced. On the Tribal Council, only Speaker Johnny Naize has served four terms but said he will not seek a fifth.
“I don’t think it’s very appropriate the way it’s written,” said Shirley, an Apache County supervisor. “Term limits belong to the people not the council.”
The Tribal Council isn’t scheduled to meet in a regular session before the filing deadline for elected offices, but the term limits legislation could be addressed in a special session.
In the meantime, Shirley’s campaign staff is setting up office in the tribal capital of Window Rock. Shirley said he will focus his campaign on government reform and involve Navajo people in decisions of the government.
Shirley left the presidency after a tumultuous relationship with the Tribal Council. He successfully reduced the number of lawmakers from 88 to 24 and secured a presidential line-item veto through ballot initiatives. Some tribal lawmakers saw it as a personal vendetta and an attack against the council.
Shirley and the council also sparred over the use of a set of traditional Navajo laws and the tribe’s business dealings with two companies that operated on the reservation, which led to the council placing Shirley on administrative leave. The tribal courts later ruled the council acted outside its authority. Special prosecutors looking into the business dealings have cleared Shirley of any wrongdoing.
When Shirley filed for a third, consecutive term in 2010, his critics argued that he was making a mockery of tribal laws. Election officials disqualified Shirley, and the decision was upheld by the tribe’s Supreme Court. The justices made clear that presidents can serve only two consecutive terms, but they said Shirley could wait four years and run again.
Begaye said his legislation would encourage younger Navajos and political newcomers to get involved in the tribal government through elected offices.
“I think the intent of term limits is that you only have X amount of years to serve, not that you can serve X amount, and then sit out, and then have an opportunity to run again,” Begaye said. “In my opinion, that’s not term limits.”
The race to become Navajo president generally features a crowded field of familiar faces and political newcomers. About a dozen people sought the office in 2010. This time around, tribal President Ben Shelly is expected to run, as is Kenneth Maryboy, a council delegate and San Juan County, Utah, commissioner.
Begaye said the council appears to be a good fit for him but did not rule out a run for the presidency.
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