Navajo President Jonathan Nez loses his bid for a second term to Buu Nygren

Buu Nygren has been elected as Navajo Nation president and Richelle Montoya will serve as vice president, the first woman to serve in that office. The unofficial results were released Tuesday from the Navajo Nation Election Administration.

Nygren defeated incumbent President Jonathan Nez, who was seeking a second term in office. He had started the evening with the lead, but Nygren soon took over and finally won enough votes to secure the victory.

Nygren thanked his supporters profusely as they gathered at the Navajo Nation fair grounds in Window Rock. He also gave gratitude to his grandmother, who was listening to the results at home, and he acknowledged his late mother for raising him.

For his platforms he has listed the economy, education, public safety, veterans issues, urban relatives, health and social services and elderly issues.

Although Nygren has never held any tribal office, he ran alongside former Navajo Nation President Joe Shirley four years ago as his vice presidential candidate. They lost to Nez.

Election Day coverage: Live voting updates | Arizona election results

Nygren, 35, grew up in Red Mesa. He is married to  Arizona State Rep. for District 7 Jasmine Blackwater-Nygren, J.D. They have a daughter, Evelyn.

Voters on the tribal nation, which stretches across Arizona, New Mexico and Utah, are also electing members of the Navajo Nation Council, who represent individual communities.

Nez received the most votes in the August primaries, out-polling 14 other candidates. Nygren finished second, with 12,878 votes, setting up the general election voting.

Nygren selected Richelle Montoya of Torreon, New Mexico, as his vice presidential running mate. Nez named Chad Abeyta, a U.S Air Force veteran from Alamo, New Mexico, to share the ticket.

The current Navajo vice president, Myron Lizer, did not seek reelection.

While campaigning, Nez ran on continuity of his leadership as president.

Election guide: November 2022

Election results | City races | School boards | State | Governor | Ballot measures | Federal

“They saw that knowledge about government counts,” Nez said earlier. “When I became president we quickly got our directors appointed because that was key, because a year later we came into COVID, but our directors were in place. We were on the front lines during this pandemic even though there wasn’t a vaccine. I think the Navajo people saw that and it brought comfort to them that we will overcome this."

Nygren promised change within the tribal government, in 2018 Nygren ran alongside former Navajo President Joe Shirley as his vice president.

"I feel like I’m well rounded," he told KUNM radio in Albuquerque. "I know the experiences and the expectations and most of the wants of the Navajo people are: water, roads, electricity, better public safety treatment centers, and really trying to create safer and healthier communities."

The council will return to session in January with the task of electing a speaker. The current speaker, Seth Damon, resigned the post after a photo of him appearing to be inebriated made its way onto social media. Damon won re-election because he was running unopposed.

The COVID-19 pandemic had halted much of what the executive and legislative branches had wanted to pursue, as all attention shifted to protecting Navajo citizens.

The tribe received $2 billion of the American Recovery Protection Act, setting off discussions between the executive office and the council about where the dollars would go.

In the end, the Navajo Nation decided to address the lack of infrastructure by approving $1 billion of ARPA funds go to infrastructure projects. The new council and president will work on deciding which projects will be funded.

Arlyssa D. Becenti covers Indigenous affairs for The Arizona Republic and azcentral. Send ideas and tips to arlyssa.becenti@arizonarepublic.com. Follow her on Twitter @ABecenti.

Support local journalism. Subscribe to azcentral.com today.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Navajo Nation election: President Jonathan Nez trailing Buu Nygren