Ellen Thompson
Havre Daily News
ethompson@havredailynews.com
The unofficial results of the Fort Belknap Indian Community Council primary election are in, with five incumbents set to seek re-election next month.
The high vote-getting team for the council's top spots Tuesday were council president Julia Doney and vice president Raymond Chandler, Sr. The pair received 533 votes and will face William ”Snuffy“ Main and Charles ”Jack“ Plumage, who received 390 votes. Harlan Mount and Kathleen Wing were eliminated after receiving 249 votes.
Doney became Fort Belknap's first female president in February, when former president Darell Martin resigned. Martin had appointed Doney vice president the year before, following the resignation of president Ben Speakthunder.
Doney promoted Chandler from within the council in February, leaving the Gros Ventre At-Large Representative position vacant until this year's election.
The top two from each of the nine council categories advance to the Nov. 1 general election.
Jay Willie Mount will face Wesley Kill Eagle for the vacant Gros Ventre At-Large Representative seat. That position is elected by members of both the Assiniboine and Gros Ventre tribes. Mount had 330 votes, and Kill Eagle had 238. Eliminated were Tennyson Boe, with 193 votes; Kay Taylor, with 191; Linda ”Sugar“ Short, with 125; and Avis King, with 108.
Six candidates faced off for the Assiniboine At-Large Representative seat, voted on by members of both tribes. Incumbent Tracy ”Ching“ King won the most votes, with 481 and will face Edward ”Buster“ Moore Jr. in November. Also in that category, Will Crasco received 185 votes, Ivan Wing Sr. received 143, Jodi McCabe Abbott received 70 and Sharon Longknife got 64 votes.
The Gros Ventre At-Large seat - this one elected by Gros Ventre members only - will be a rematch of the primary. Phillip ”Knobby“ Stiffarm received 405 votes Tuesday, surpassing incumbent Harold ”Jiggs“ Main's 268 votes.
For the Assiniboine At-Large seat chosen by Assiniboine members alone, John Allen will face Darryl Crasco. Allen received 191 votes and Crasco 179. Aaron Healy Sr. was eliminated with 141 votes.
In the Gros Ventre River District, incumbent Velva Doore was the top vote-getter, with 132 votes. She will face Ruben Horseman, who received 87 votes. Patty Getten and Edward ”Tom“ Filesteel were eliminated, with 74 and 66 votes, respectively.
In the Assiniboine River District, Kermit Horn and Stanley ”P-Nut“ Johnson will advance with 124 and 108 votes, respectively. Rochelle King Healy had 68 votes.
Incumbent Gros Ventre Mountain District Representative Craig Chandler Sr. was eliminated Tuesday. Patti Carrywater will face Craig Shambo in November. Carrywater had 109 votes and Shambo got 101. Carletta Benson was also eliminated, with 35 votes.
Max White will face Tina Has The Eagle for the Assiniboine Mountain District Representative seat. Both received 63 votes Tuesday. Randy Wing, with 59 votes, and Kenneth Lewis Sr., with 42 votes, were eliminated.
Enrolled members who are at least 18 years old are eligible to vote in the general election. Absentee voting begins Wednesday.
Members should already have absentee voting forms, which were sent out in August and September, election committee chairwoman Nicki Kirkaldie said Wednesday.
Voting will take place for the River Assiniboine at the Red Whip Center and for the River Gros Ventre at the Wath-a-tau Center in Dodson. Mountain Gros Ventre members vote at the John Capture Center in Hays, and Mountain Assiniboine members vote at the Old Lodge Pole School, Kirkaldie said.
Absentee voting can be done by mail or in person at the election office, located at the Fort Belknap Agency in the old Indian Health Service hospital.
Fort Belknap Indian Reservation has about 5,000 voters, Kirkaldie said. Tuesday's turnout was standard for a primary, with about 1,200 people voting, she said.
