Rules committee adopts election-code amendments, forms task force to pursue further reforms

The Cherokee Nation Rules Committee voted unanimously on May 28 to adopt an act amending Title 26 (Elections) and to establish a task force to study further election-code reforms.

The committee’s action followed a lengthy review and debate of the proposed code changes. Attorney General Chad Harsha said the revisions must be managed with the Department of the Interior in mind because “the Principal Chief’s Act of 1970 … is a very archaic, ancient, paternalistic, ridiculous provision,” and advised timely submission of the code to the Bureau of Indian Affairs for its customary review. Harsha and council counsel John Young both said the 1970 statute continues to govern submission practice for the five tribes and urged the council to follow past timelines to avoid delays.

The adopted package codifies a range of technical and procedural changes produced by a multi-month legislative working group. Dr. Candace Tehee, who spoke for the working group, said members solicited input from the Election Commission, the Attorney General’s office and the executive branch and focused on measures to increase voter access. “We bring this forth to you now for your review and discussion, and with the full understanding that it is not 100% perfect,” Tehee said, adding the group’s intent to address issues that arose in the last election while pushing more complex reforms to later study.

Council discussion included a proposal by Councilwoman Julia Coats to tighten the residency definition in section 34 — replacing the phrase “domicile or abode” with “legal domicile” and adding prima facie verification language — to reduce subjective determinations about a candidate’s intent to return to a residence. Election Commission staff and counsel cautioned that courts often interpret domicile standards and said further study would help refine enforcement language. The council did not adopt Coats’s amendment on the floor.

After extended debate about withdrawal deadlines and runoff logistics, the committee approved a motion to form an election-code task force to pursue several deferred items. The task force will include a minimum of two representatives chosen by the legislative branch, two by the executive branch and at least two members from the Election Commission; appointments will be made at a later Rules Committee meeting. The working-group recommendations the task force will consider include electronic signature standards, an electronic absentee-request option, an electronic voting portal pilot, and more robust campaign-finance oversight.

Procedure and outcome: the Rules Committee recorded a roll-call vote of 16-0 to adopt the election-code amendments as presented. The council then amended the agenda and approved formation of the task force by voice vote; membership appointments will be announced at a later meeting.

What’s next: The council will deliver the adopted code to the Department of the Interior for the BIA’s customary review related to the Principal Chief election timeline; the newly formed task force will study additional reforms with an eye toward implementation in a future election cycle.