{"id":430,"date":"2026-06-15T10:09:49","date_gmt":"2026-06-15T10:09:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=430"},"modified":"2026-06-15T10:09:49","modified_gmt":"2026-06-15T10:09:49","slug":"this-candidates-tribal-background-gave-him-firsthand-experience-with-washington","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=430","title":{"rendered":"This Candidate\u2019s Tribal Background Gave Him Firsthand Experience with Washington"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Jonathan Nez spent four years serving as president of the Navajo Nation, where he responded to issues raised by the pandemic, water shortages, food deserts and infrastructure challenges. He testified multiple times before Congress.<\/p>\n

Read more Trump\u2019s Lasting Legacy Is Trump Himself<\/a><\/p>\n

Now he wants to be part of it.<\/p>\n

The former president of the tribe is the only Democrat running in Arizona\u2019s 2ndCongressional District, a seat currently held by Republican Rep. Eli Crane. Nez would be the first Native American to represent Arizona if elected, and he argues that his tribal experience makes him uniquely qualified to represent the district in one of the most competitive House races this year.<\/p>\n

\u201cI sat in congressional hearings, testifying on behalf of people. I might even go as far as to say I sat in front of committees more, time-wise, than my opponent has ever done,\u201d Nez said. \u201cI have fought for people that are in my jurisdiction, and I\u2019ll continue to do that at a larger capacity.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a key race for the Democratic Party in its efforts to take back control of the House of Representatives. For advocates of more Native American representation in Congress, it\u2019s also a rare opportunity to get someone with tribal leadership experience into the halls of Congress.<\/p>\n

In the class of current Native American lawmakers and candidates, Nez is the only one with experience as an elected tribal leader.<\/p>\n

In an interview with NOTUS, Nez, <\/b>who also served on the Navajo County Board of Supervisors, emphasized his desire to represent all constituents, not just tribe members. He said that as he\u2019s campaigned, he\u2019s sensed discontent among voters \u2014 particularly ones from rural areas \u2014 about policy decisions that don\u2019t prioritize pressing issues for the district.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey bring up that costs are too high. They can\u2019t afford healthy food, let alone find it. Health care centers are on the brink of closure, and the other is, there\u2019s a real concern about water security,\u201d Nez said. \u201cI travel the district and people are very upset.\u201d<\/p>\n

But he also said that his time in tribal leadership has taught him a lot about how power in Washington works and that there\u2019s more to it than introducing bills.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think Democrats have a lot to learn from Republicans or vice versa. And it\u2019s all about coming back together, working things out, compromising to get things done. Give and take,\u201d Nez told NOTUS. \u201cThat\u2019s how this government was established. You can\u2019t get everything you want, and sometimes you have to compromise. That\u2019s being an effective lawmaker.\u201d<\/p>\n

At a moment when the Trump administration\u2019s agenda is having an outsized effect on rural communities, Nez said his experience representing a tribe that is geographically bigger<\/u><\/b>than some states<\/u><\/span> has positioned him well for a rematch against Crane.<\/p>\n

Nez first ran against Crane for the seat \u2014 which stretches across half of Arizona<\/u><\/span> \u2014 in 2024, <\/b>and Crane beat him by 9 percentage points.This year, Democrats are bullish about his chances in the battleground state, given historic political headwinds Republicans are expected to face. The district is categorized as likely to favor Republican candidates by Cook Political Report<\/u><\/span>, and it\u2019s included in the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee\u2019s \u201cRed to Blue\u201d list of target districts.<\/p>\n

Crane\u2019s campaign did not respond to a request for comment about a rematch against Nez.<\/p>\n

Read more Republicans Wish Trump\u2019s Favorite Voting Bill Would Just Die Already<\/a><\/p>\n

But Nez told NOTUS he feels better positioned to run against Crane this time around, with more support systems around the country for Native American candidates.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we elect Native people, the theory of change behind that is not just electing Native people to get a higher number of us in office,\u201d said Jordan James Harvill, the senior director of national programs at Advance Native Political Leadership, an organization focused on electing more Native American lawmakers. \u201cThere\u2019s a genuine belief that Native folks operate through a prism of lived experience that benefits everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n

Holly Cook Macarro, a tribal advocate and political strategist, told NOTUS that this election could be a major watershed year for Indian Country representation in Congress, and she\u2019s hoping to see the results of years of organizing come to fruition.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a historic year in terms of the number of Native American candidates that we have that are not niche candidates but are true leading candidates in their races,\u201d Cook Macarro said.<\/p>\n

There are only a handful of Native American lawmakers on the Hill, including Reps. Tom Cole (R-Oklahoma), Josh Brecheen (R-Oklahoma) and Sharice Davids (D-Kansas).<\/p>\n

But the midterms could result in a blue wave of lawmakers with tribal membership to the House and Senate. Michigan state Rep. Sean McCann, a citizen of the Potawatomi Nation, is running for a House seat, and Mary Peltola, a former lawmaker and Yup\u2019ik tribe member, is running for a Senate seat in Alaska. Peggy Flanagan, the current lieutenant governor of Minnesota and a citizen of the White Earth Nation of Ojibwe, is running in the state\u2019s Democratic Senate primary race.<\/p>\n

Nez said that during his tenure as president, he collaborated closely with his Republican Navajo Nation vice president and worked with the federal government as it flipped between parties.<\/p>\n

He said that a bipartisan approach is something he is hoping to bring to Congress.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s all about relationship-building,\u201d Nez said.<\/p>\n

Nez and Crane are both running uncontested in their primaries, which are set for July 21. For Nez, a win this fall would be historic.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I am vying to be the first Native American to be elected from Arizona to the U.S. House of Representatives. That also means that I will be bringing a different perspective in Congress,\u201d Nez said. \u201cThey have yet to hear a voice like mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more 84-Year-Old Mitch McConnell Hospitalized, Spokesperson Says<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jonathan Nez would be the only Native American with elected tribal leadership experience in Congress.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":429,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-430","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-2026-election"],"yoast_head":"\nThis Candidate\u2019s Tribal Background Gave Him Firsthand Experience with Washington - Modern Home Journals<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=430\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"This Candidate\u2019s Tribal Background Gave Him Firsthand Experience with Washington - Modern Home Journals\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Jonathan Nez would be the only Native American with elected tribal leadership experience in Congress.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=430\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Modern Home Journals\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-15T10:09:49+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=430#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=430\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/533de239efc09a2ab59959cc1bff86d0\"},\"headline\":\"This Candidate\u2019s Tribal Background Gave Him Firsthand Experience with Washington\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-15T10:09:49+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=430\"},\"wordCount\":997,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=430#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/bd8fe41af41ceb08017b33cc471daad0-scaled.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"2026 Election\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=430#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=430\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=430\",\"name\":\"This Candidate\u2019s Tribal Background Gave Him Firsthand Experience with Washington - Modern Home Journals\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=430#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=430#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/bd8fe41af41ceb08017b33cc471daad0-scaled.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-15T10:09:49+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/533de239efc09a2ab59959cc1bff86d0\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=430#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=430\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=430#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/bd8fe41af41ceb08017b33cc471daad0-scaled.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/bd8fe41af41ceb08017b33cc471daad0-scaled.jpg\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":1707,\"caption\":\"FILE - Jonathan Nez, Democratic candidate for Arizona's 2nd Congressional District, speaks during a Presidential Forum at Arizona State University, July 12, 2022, in Phoenix. 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