Navajo high court finds election officials in contempt

By David Schwartz PHOENIX (Reuters) - The Navajo Nation's highest court on Friday held the tribe's election board in contempt for refusing to follow its orders that a Nov. 4 vote to pick the tribe's top official be postponed and that a candidate be removed from the ballot. The Navajo Supreme Court made the ruling against the Native American tribe's board of Election Supervisors after the board defied an Oct. 23 decision by the high court that ordered the removal of Chris Deschene's name. Deschene was disqualified for refusing to prove his fluency in the Navajo language, which is required by law for all candidates seeking to be the leader of the largest Native American tribe in the United States. "The government refuses to comply with the law and refuses to comply with the court order, that is the finding of the court," Chief Justice Herb Yazzie said at a court hearing in Chinle, Arizona. After consulting with a top elections official, the court allowed the general election to proceed but without releasing the vote for the new Navajo president. That contest will be determined at a later date. "This is what we've been asking for all along after the Navajo Supreme Court made its ruling," said David Jordan, who represented one of the people challenging Deschene's candidacy. "Now that will be followed." The high court had demanded the election be delayed and new ballots printed with the name of the third-place finisher from a primary election in August, Russell Begaye. Begaye will now face former tribal president Joe Shirley Jr. once a new presidential vote is scheduled. The race has been in chaos following a hearing officer's controversial decision on Oct. 9 to boot Deschene from the ballot because he failed to answer questions in Navajo. Deschene said he was disappointed by Friday's decision. "This ruling could have a chilling effect on the future of our elections. It sends a dangerous message that your vote doesn't count," he wrote in an online statement. The sprawling Navajo Nation, which has more than 300,000 tribal member, covers parts of Arizona, Utah and New Mexico totaling 27,425 square miles (71,030 square km). (Reporting by David Schwartz; Editing by Daniel Wallis and Mohammad Zargham)