Election Limbo Day 34: Save the Date!

Chad Smith has called the new election for September 24th.  The Election Commission and Smith apparently worked together on it and set the date.  There will be a couple of weeks for people to request an absentee ballot (until August 12), then the absentee ballots will be mailed out the week before the Cherokee National Holiday.  We think the holiday will be quite a spectacle this year, with both campaigns in full force and S. Joe Crittenden giving the State of the Nation speech.  Depending on how long it takes after the election to certify, recount and appeal, it could be October before our election is over.

A couple of important things to note: 1) if you are an At-Large voter, the ONLY way you can vote is via absentee ballot. If you just show up at a precinct on September 24 and cast an At-Large Challenge Ballot, your vote will NOT be counted. There was much voter confusion over this in the general election on June 25th. 

2) If you requested an absentee ballot for the general or run-off election, the EC should send you one for the September 24th election. 

3) If you want an absentee ballot, the only way for you to get one is to request the ballot in writing. So, if someone just calls and asks you if you'd like to vote absentee and you say "yes," that doesn't mean you are getting a ballot. Download this form here and fax it to the Election Commission at (918) 458-6101 (or mail it or drop it off). Yes, we are aware this form was for the run-off election last week, but just write "Sept. 24th Election" at the top for clarification. The information is what is important, not the form itself. We imagine there will be a new form available on the EC website, but as of tonight it was not.

Election Limbo Day 29- Deputy Chief Elected

Photo Credit Cherokee Phoenix

Last night, the Cherokee people successfully elected a deputy chief, and on August 14th, S. Joe Crittenden will be sworn in along with all the other new council members. But, he will also begin acting as Principal Chief starting that day until a new Chief is successfully elected and then sworn in.

The final certified results showed Crittenden receiving 6478 votes (53.17%) to Soap's 5706 votes (46.83%). A little more than 12,000 folks voted, so voter turnout was lower to the tune of about 3000 votes.

Three council races were also decided--In District 1, David Walkingstick trounced Mark Vance garnering almost 70% of the vote.  In District 2, Jodie Fishinghawk beat Harley Buzzard by collecting 65% of the vote, and it was a close race in District 4 when Dick Lay beat incumbent Dr. Bradley Cobb. Only 80 votes separated the two.

Now that this is behind us-- we still have another election upcoming. We don't know yet when the new election will be held, but expect that announcement to come any day. But what can we expect?

You can expect we will be here, sorting thru the allegations and digging for the truth. Although, in this election, even when the truth is presented to people, some don't seem to care or believe it. 

If you've not read this blog since the beginning, and have some time to kill, we would encourage you to start at the beginning-- back to Monday, May 2nd, 54 days before the original election. In the last three months, there have been rumors, misinformation and exaggeration. And we've gotten to the bottom of most of it. 

Election Limbo Day 28: Deputy Decision?

Tonight’s election results should come in online at www.cherokee.org after the polls close at 7.   There are run-offs for three council races and Deputy Chief.  Chris Soap got almost 47% of the vote in the general election, and Joe Crittenden got 36%. 

The other run-offs feature a couple of council members going against each other , Jodie Fishinghawk and Harley Buzzard in District 2.  Fishinghawk got more than 40% of the vote the first time around, making it an uphill election for Buzzard.  In District One, it’s two new comers going against each other, Mark Vance and David Walkingstick.  Walkingstick got almost twice as many votes as Vance the first time around, but only 36% of the total in a crowded field.   And in District 4, which is Mayes, Washington, Nowata and Craig counties,  only about 50 votes separated incumbent Brad Cobb from challenger Nick Lay.

Tomorrow, (or late tonight) we'll know a little bit more truth about what our government will look like.