PHOTOS BY JOHN WEYMER

Herman Dillon and Nancy Shippentower-Games were sworn into office June 16.

Council results finalized

By Clare Jensen

More than 800 Puyallup tribal members came out to vote in the 2008 general Tribal Council election earlier this month.

The election, which was conducted June 7, determined the re-election of Tribal Council Chairman Herman Dillon and the election of former councilmember and Full Circle member Nancy Shippentower-Games.

The official results had not been certified until June 16 due to protests from candidates, claiming improper campaigning and voting may have skewed the results.

Sylvia Miller and Roleen Hargrove, the other two candidates in the general election, made several protests regarding the election.

Tribal council determined the 11 allegations fell into two categories: the way in which the election was conducted, and candidate electioneering.The only violation council determined was by candidate Roleen Hargrove, who was electioneering too close to the polling place. Because the one violation was fairly minor, it did not justify invalidating election results.

The council, which excluded Herman Dillon and two other council members on some of the issues, examined all of the allegations in great detail.

Nancy Shippentower-Games was not found to have made any violations.

The Tribe’s election committee looked into each claim of voting misconduct and showed that they were all inaccurate.

Protesting election results is a common occurance in the Tribal Council elections, and elections frequently generate one or two protests.

Most protests to elections are not upheld for a variety of reasons, and it is rare that election results are invalidated due to a protest.

Nancy Shippentower-Games has run for office on several occasions since serving on the council during the land claims settlement of the late 1980s. She ran for office for the last three years consecutively.

She said she has never protested election results.

“If I lost, I lost,” she said, adding that meant she would just run again next time.

In the 2007 election, she was in the top four candidates of the general election, and this year, her perseverance has paid off.

Nancy Shippentower-Games will serve her second term on the council, and has a vision for uniting the Tribe, and bringing traditional culture back into the lives of the membership.

She has a strong passion for enabling tribal youth to be successful, and wants to create prevention, intervention and educational opportunities for youth.

“There’s a group of kids between 13 and 17 that are lost…I want to find something that will entice them,” she said.

Her top priorities for the duration of her term include completing the Elders Center and Youth Center, gaining more land base for the membership and instating a substance abuse prevention/intervention center for youth.

“I would like to state that I never said I would get rid of percapitas and I am tired of the innuendos and rumors pertaining to this issue. It was the previous council that tried to reduce the children percapitas, and that is when tribal members came together, and how Full Circle was born.”

Nancy Shippentower-Games  is the daughter of Don and Janet McCloud who were actively involved in the fishing rights and American Indian movements. Nancy Shippentower-Games has been actively invloved in Indian and Tribal rights issues throughout her life.

“I grew up being very vocal. That’s the way we are,” she recalled.

Nancy Shippentower-Games is a representative for the cultural activist coalition, Full Circle. She is the third Full Circle member to be elected to the council. David Bean and James Miles, two other Full Circle founders, were elected in 2006 and 2007.

Herman Dillon has sat for 24 years on the Tribal Council. He was elected with more than 400 votes from the membership.

Herman Dillon believes he brings a wealth of experience, and a vision for the future to the council for his next three-year term.

In his time on the council, Herman Dillon has seen the construction of Chief Leschi School, the Puyallup Tribal Health Authority’s clinics and counseling centers, as well as two casinos.

“I’m hoping that these things continue going the way they are, we’ll probably get most of the things done…it’s just a matter of structuring…and moving forward.”

The construction of the new Elders Center, Youth Center, shipping terminals and new casino are a few of the things that encouraged Herman Dillon to run for council again this term.

“There are numerous projects that we’re working on, and I’m planning on working with the council to see that we’re able to complete them.”

Nancy Shippentower-Games received 358 votes, getting her the second open chair on the council.

Sylvia Miller and Roleen Hargrove received 355 and 250 votes, respectively.

Herman Dillon and Nancy Shippentower-Games will each serve three-year terms, joining five other council members on the board of directors for the tribe. Incumbent Kathryn Lopez, who served on the council for 15 years, did not pass through the primary election.

Story Tools