Window Rock, known in Navajo as Tségháhoodzání, is a city and census-designated place that serves as the capital of the Navajo Nation, the largest Native American tribe by both land and tribal enrollment. The capital lies within the boundaries of the St. Michaels Chapter, adjacent to the Arizona and New Mexico state line. Window Rock is the site of the Navajo Nation governmental campus, which contains the Navajo Nation Council, Navajo Nation Supreme Court, the offices of the Navajo Nation President and Vice President, and many Navajo government buildings.
The Navajo Nation, also known as Navajoland, is an Indian reservation of Navajo people in the United States. It occupies portions of northeastern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico, and southeastern Utah. The seat of government is located in Window Rock, Arizona.
The Navajo Nation Council is the Legislative Branch of the Navajo Nation government. The council meets four times per year, with additional special sessions, at the Navajo Nation Council Chamber, which is in Window Rock, Arizona.
The Supreme Court of the Navajo Nation is the highest judicial Native American authority of the Navajo Nation, the largest American Indian nation in the United States. According to Harvard Law School, "the judicial system of the Navajo Nation is the most active tribal judicial system in the United States, with a case load that rivals, and in some instances exceeds, many municipal, county, and state judicial systems."
Joe Shirley Jr. is a Navajo politician who is the only two-term President of the Navajo Nation. He served as president from 2003 to 2011. He lives in Chinle, Arizona, and is Tódíchʼíiʼnii, born for Tábąąhá.
Kenneth Maryboy is an American politician for San Juan County, Utah, and was Navajo Nation Council Delegate. Kenneth is a former San Juan County Commissioner. Maryboy was the third Democrat in a row to have been elected to the Commissioner District 3 position since its inception in 1984 that divided the county into three districts. Kenneth was replaced on the commission in 2015 by Rebecca M. Benally
Albert A. Hale was an American attorney and politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he served in the Arizona Senate from 2004 to 2011 and in the Arizona House of Representatives from 2011 to 2017.
Peter MacDonald is a Native American politician and the only four term Chairman of the Navajo Nation. MacDonald was born in Arizona, U.S. and served the U.S. Marine Corps in World War II as a Navajo Code Talker. He was first elected Navajo Tribal Chairman in 1970.
The President of the Navajo Nation is the Executive Branch of the Navajo Nation. The office was created in 1991 following restructuring of the national government. The President and Vice President are elected every four years. The Navajo Nation President shall serve no more than two consecutive terms.
The Navajo Nation presidential election of 2010 was held on Tuesday, November 2, 2010. Ben Shelly won the election.
Ben Shelly was the 7th president of the Navajo Nation. He was the first president to have been elected both president and vice president of the Navajo Nation, as well as the first New Mexican Navajo to hold the Navajo presidency.
The Navajo Times – known during the early 1980s as Navajo Times Today – is a newspaper created by the Navajo Tribal Council in 1959; in 1982 it was the first daily newspaper owned and published by a Native American Indian Nation. Now financially independent, it is published in English; its headquarters are located in Window Rock, Arizona.
Frank Chee Willeto was an American politician and Navajo code talker during World War II. Willeto served as the vice president of the Navajo Nation under President Milton Bluehouse, Sr. from his appointment in August 1998 until January 1999, when the Begaye administration took office.
The office of Vice-president of the Navajo Nation was created in 1991 following restructuring of the Navajo Nation government. The president and vice president are elected every four years. The Navajo Nation Vice-president shall serve no more than two terms.
A chapter is the most local form of government on the Navajo Nation. The Nation is broken into five agencies. Each agency contains chapters; currently there are 110 local chapters, each with their own chapter house. Chapters are semi-self autonomous, being able to decide most matters which concern their own chapter. Typically, they meet in a Chapter house, where they can also express their opinions to their Navajo Nation Council Delegate, although those opinions are non-binding. As of January 2004, there were a total of 110 such meeting places in existence. Currently there are 24 delegates who represent the 110 chapters. The number of delegates was reduced from 88 in the 2010 election.
The Navajo Nation presidential election of 2018 was held on Tuesday, November 6, 2018. The candidates for President of the Navajo Nation in the general election were Jonathan Nez and Joe Shirley, Jr. Jonathan Nez and running mate Myron Lizer won the election. Although neither Nez nor Shirley were incumbents, they possessed the high name recognition associated with incumbents.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in the Navajo Nation, the largest indigenous sovereign state in the United States, face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Same-sex sexual activity is legal, but same-sex unions are not recognized, and marriage has been banned by the tribal constitution since 2005. In 2022, a bill was introduced to repeal the ban and recognize same-sex marriage, but has faced challenges on the reservation.
The 2022 Navajo Nation presidential election took place on Tuesday, November 8, 2022, to elect the president and vice president of the Navajo Nation. The primary election was held on August 2. Incumbent president Jonathan Nez ran for reelection with attorney Chad Abeyta as his running mate. Incumbent Vice President Myron Lizer did not seek re-election, instead running for U.S. House in Arizona. Nez and Abeyta advanced to the general election, as did the challenging ticket of construction manager Buu Nygren and Torreon/Star Lake Chapter President Richelle Montoya. Nygren and Montoya won the general election by a 6-point margin, and Montoya became the Navajo Nation's first female vice president.
The 2015 Navajo Nation Presidential Election was held on April 21, 2015, with the primary on August 26, 2014. Joe Shirley Jr. and Chris Deschene advanced to the general.
The office of the Speaker of the Navajo Nation Council was created in 1991 following restructuring of the Navajo Nation government. The Speaker is the head of the legislative branch and presides over sessions of the council. The Speaker of the council serve a term of two years during the administration of the incumbent President. The Office of the speaker is located in Window Rock, AZ at the Council Chambers.
