Board votes 8-1 not to include Shirley
By Marley Shebala
Navajo Times
WINDOW ROCK, June 25, 2010
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(Times photo - Althea John)
Edison Wauneka, director of the Navajo Election Administration, attends a meeting of the Navajo Board of Election Supervisors June 16 during which the board drew names to determine the order that candidates for president will be listed on the ballot.
And if the decision favors Shirley, election officials will immediately add his name to the list of candidates before sending the ballots to be printed, said NEA Director Edison Wauneka.
Shirley would be in the No. 12 spot, right above write-in candidate George Herrera, Wauneka said.
On May 26, the Navajo Board of Election Supervisors disqualified Shirley as a candidate, citing the law that limits presidents to two consecutive terms in office. Shirley was elected in 2002 and re-elected in 2006.
Shirley appealed the disqualification to Office of Hearings and Appeals and a hearing on the matter was held June 15. The decision had not been announced as of press time Wednesday. Each side has said it would appeal an adverse ruling to the Navajo Nation Supreme Court.
Though disqualified, Shirley's name was among those written on pieces of paper in a container when the election board drew names at random June 16 to determine ballot position. Wauneka said the election staff decided to include his name and let the election board decide whether or not to give it a ballot position.
Shirley's name was the seventh drawn, meaning that under normal circumstances it would be in seventh position on the primary election ballot. But after a lengthy discussion, the election board voted 8-1 to remove it from the drawing.
The sole vote to keep him in the No. 7 spot on the ballot came from Supervisor Bessie Yellowhair Simpson, a former staff member in the president's office.
The drawing is held in an effort to avoid favoritism in ballot placement, with each election supervisor drawing a folded piece of paper with a candidate's name on it from the container.
Board Chairman Larry Biltah drew Rex Lee Jim's name first, meaning he will be in the No. 1 position. Supervisor Joe Daisy drew Shirley's name.
The names of write-in candidates always appear at the bottom of the ballot, and are not part of the drawing. Following is the proposed ballot order for presidential candidates in the 2010 primary:
- Rex Lee Jim
- Donald Benally
- Ben Shelly
- Daniel Peaches
- D. Harrison Tsosie
- Lynda M. Lovejoy
- Sharon Clahchischilliage
- Dale E. Tsosie
- Jerry Todacheenie
- Arbin Mitchell
- Anthony Begay
Write-in: George Herrera
