Tribal candidate must testify or take Navajo test
WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. (AP) — A candidate for Navajo Nation president must either take a test or be called to testify to determine whether he’s fluent enough in the tribe’s language to qualify for the post.
That was the determination Friday by Richie Nez of the tribe’s Office of Hearings and Appeals. Nez is hearing arguments in a case brought by two of Deschene’s challengers in the primary election.
They allege Deschene lied on his candidate application and is violating a tribal law that says presidential candidates must speak fluent Navajo.
Deschene says fluency is hard to define but that he has communicated well in Navajo with voters on the campaign trail.
The case came to Nez after the tribal Supreme Court ruled that fluency is a reasonable qualification.