The 2019 Muscogee (Creek) general elections took place on November 2, 2019, to elect the Principal Chief, Second Chief, and half of the 16 National Council seats. The primary election was held on September 21 and in races where no one candidate won a majority of the votes, the top candidates moved on to the November general election.[1] Muscogee (Creek) National general elections are held on the Saturday immediately following the first Friday of November every four years. Enrolled citizens, 18 years of age and above are eligible to register to vote in the elections. Incumbent Principal Chief James R. Floyd announced in June 2019 that he would not seek re-election and Second Chief Louis Hicks was unable to seek re-election due to term limits.[2]
Because of irregularities, the primary election results were nullified and November 2 became the new primary election date with general election runoffs, when necessary, being held on December 14, 2019. National Council Second Speaker David Hill was the top vote-getter in the November primary and was elected principal chief in the December general election runoff; National Council Representative Del Beaver was elected second chief outright in the November primary. Hill and Beaver had both received the most votes in the nullified September primary.[3]
Employees of Muscogee (Creek) nation that file for candidacy must file for a leave of absence from their employment from the day they file for candidacy until the day after the elections. [4]
On September 21, the primary elections took place with nearly 5,000 voters. On September 28, the election board announced the official results.[6] On October 2, the MCN Supreme Court nullified the results of the MCN Primary Election following receipt of petitions alleging fraud, irregularities, and recount of absentee ballots.[7] The MCN election board announced November 2 as the new primary election date.[8] The November 2 election resulted in no changes in the winner of each race. In the Tulsa District Seat A race, Cynthia Tiger and Jerry Wilson withdrew after the Sept. 21 primary, leaving the incumbent, Robert Hufft as the winner of that race. In the Okfuskee and McIntosh races, the winning candidate received a super majority and avoided the need to participate in the general elections. Del Beaver defeated Adam Jones III 3,480 votes to 1,535 which meant that the second chief election would not be held during the general election.[9]
September 21 Nullified Results[]
Principal Chief
Candidate
Votes
%
David Hill
1272
25.44%
Bim Steve Bruner
1039
20.78%
Lucian Tiger
1029
20.58%
Monte Randal
617
12.34%
Timothy Good Voice
306
6.12%
Brenda Golden
261
5.22%
Jackie Jackson
168
3.36%
George Tiger
135
2.70%
Samuel Alexander
125
2.50%
Joseph Rogers
48
0.96%
Second Chief
Candidate
Votes
%
Del Beaver
3065
63.05%
Adam Jones
1798
36.95%
Creek (Seat A)
Candidate
Votes
%
Dean Hughes
1819
38.66%
Joseph Hicks
1492
31.71%
Dode Warrington-Barnett
1394
29.63%
McIntosh (Seat A)
Candidate
Votes
%
Darrell Proctor
3181
68.64%
Charles Colbert
1453
31.36%
Muskogee (Seat A)
Candidate
Votes
%
Lora Harjo-King
1891
41.45%
Mary Crawford
1708
37.44%
Jessina Brown
963
21.11%
Wagoner (Seat A)
Candidate
Votes
%
Charles McHenry
2042
43.74%
Dierdra Soap
1410
30.20%
Terri Jorgensen
839
17.97%
Pamela Snyder-Osmun
378
8.10%
Okfuskee (Seat A)
Candidate
Votes
%
Randall Hicks
3031
65.65%
Bert Robison
1586
34.35%
Okmulgee (Seat A)
Candidate
Votes
%
Carmin Tecumseh-Williams
1384
28.99%
William Lowe
1059
22.18%
Grover Wind
1056
22.12%
Brian Jones
677
14.18%
Patrick Moore
598
12.53%
Tulsa (Seat A)
Candidate
Votes
%
Robert Hufft
2974
63.04%
Cynthia Tiger
1053
22.32%
Jerry Wilson
691
14.65%
November 2 Primary Results[]
Principal Chief
Candidate
Votes
%
David Hill
1966
38.27%
Bim Steve Bruner
1172
22.81%
Lucian Tiger
1161
22.60%
Monte Randal
496
9.66%
Timothy Good Voice
254
4.94%
Samuel Alexander
88
1.71%
Second Chief
Candidate
Votes
%
Del Beaver
3480
69.39%
Adam Jones
1535
30.60%
Creek (Seat A)
Candidate
Votes
%
Dean Hughes
1687
34.75%
Joseph Hicks
1760
36.25%
Dode Warrington-Barnett
1408
29.00%
McIntosh (Seat A)
Candidate
Votes
%
Darrell Proctor
3347
69.76%
Charles Colbert
1451
30.24%
Muskogee (Seat A)
Candidate
Votes
%
Lora Harjo-King
2165
45.63%
Mary Crawford
1746
36.80%
Jessina Brown
834
17.58%
Wagoner (Seat A)
Candidate
Votes
%
Charles McHenry
2328
48.07%
Dierdra Soap
1712
35.35%
Terri Jorgensen
803
16.58%
Okfuskee (Seat A)
Candidate
Votes
%
Randall Hicks
3242
67.39%
Bert Robison
1569
32.61%
Okmulgee (Seat A)
Candidate
Votes
%
Carmin Tecumseh-Williams
1509
30.83%
William Lowe
1248
25.50%
Grover Wind
1149
23.47%
Brian Jones
554
11.32%
Patrick Moore
435
8.89%
Tulsa (Seat A)
Candidate
Votes
%
Robert Hufft
Unchallenged
100%
Cynthia Tiger
Withdrew
0.00%
Jerry Wilson
Withdrew
0.00%
General Election[]
On December 14, the general election was held and three days later on December 17, 2019 the unofficial final election results were released showing David Hill as the front runner for the Principal Chief race. The results became official on December 20 and on January 1, 2020 winning candidates were sworn in to their position at the MCN Council House in Okmulgee, Oklahoma. On January 4, 2020 an inauguration ceremony was held at the River Spirit Casino Resort to commemorate the election of new Executive Branch leaders.[10][11]