Ned Norris Jr.
Ned Norris, Jr. | |
---|---|
Chairman of the Tohono O'odham | |
In office August 3, 2007 – May 28, 2015 | |
Vice President | Wavalene M. Romero (since 2011) Isidro Lopez (2007–2011) |
Preceded by | Vivian Juan-Saunders |
Succeeded by | Edward D. Manuel |
Personal details | |
Born | 1955 |
Political party | Democrat |
Spouse | Janice Norris |
Children | Three |
Residence(s) | Fresnal Canyon, Baboquivari District, Arizona |
Occupation | Politician |
Ned Norris, Jr. (born 1955) is the former chairman of the Tohono O'odham Nation of southern Arizona. He held the office for two consecutive terms from 2007-2015. Norris previously worked as the director of marketing and public relations for the O'odham Gaming Authority.[1]
Biography
Early life
Ned Norris, Jr. was born in 1955 and raised in Tucson, Arizona.[2] Norris attended both elementary school and middle school in Flagstaff, Arizona before graduating from Sunnyside High School in Tucson.[2] He received a certification in social work from Pima Community College and enrolled at some classes at the University of Arizona, where he later was awarded an honorary Human of Letters doctorate.[2]
Career
Norris began working for the government of the Tohono O'odham nation in 1978 as a nonattorney tribal judge.[2] He served as a trial judge until 1993.[2] He also served on the school board of the Sunnyside Unified School District in Pima County, Arizona, from 1997 until 2000.[2]
Additionally, Norris was employed as the director of public relations and marketing for the Tohono O’odham Gaming Authority.[2] He resigned from this position in 2003 when he was elected the Vice Chairman of the Tohono O'odham nation.[2] Norris has also worked for the Desert Diamond Casino as assistant director of public relations.[2]
Vice Chairman of the Tohono O'odham (2003–2006)
In 1999, Vivian Juan-Saunders announced her intention to challenge incumbent Tohono O'odham Chairman Edward Manuel, who was seeking a second term in office.[1] Juan-Saunders chose Norris as her running mate in the election.[1] Manuel defeated Juan-Saunders to win a second term as chairman.[1]
In 2003, Vivian Juan-Saunders once again sought the chairmanship with Ned Norris Jr. as her running mate.[1] She and Norris won the election with 59% of the vote in a rematch with Edward Manuel, who was seeking a third term.[1] Norris became the Vice Chairman of the Tohono O'odham under Chairman Vivian Juan-Saunders, the first woman to lead the Tohono O'odham.[3] He held the post until his resignation in June 2006.[3]
Chairman of the Tohono O'odham (2007–2015)
In 2007, Norris challenged incumbent Chairman Juan-Saunders in the Tohono O'odham executive election.[3] Norris ousted Juan-Saunders in the election, which was held on May 26, 2007.[3] He received 1,766 of the 3,105 total votes cast by Tohono O'odham voters.[3] His running mate, Isidro Lopez, became the Vice Chairman of the Tohono O'odham.[3] Norris and Lopez was formally inaugurated as Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Tohono O'odham Nation on Friday, August 3, 2007.[4]
He announced that his priorities as Chairman are to attract college educated Tohono O'odham back to the reservation, as well as foucs on health care and the alleviation of unemployment.[2]
In 2011, Norris announced his candidacy for re-election as chairman. Wavalene Marie Romero, a Tohono O'odham councilwoman, is Norris' running mate for vice chairman. Vice Chairman Isidro Lopez chose to retire rather than seek a second term.
On Saturday, May 28, 2011, Ned Norris Jr. was re-elected to a second term as Chairman of the Tohono O'odham Nation. The total number of votes were 3,729. Norris received 2,238 votes defeating Juan-Saunders who received 1,491 votes.
In May 2015, Norris and his running mate Romero were defeated by former Chairman Edward D. Manuel by 213 votes.
References
- ^ a b c d e f Barber, D.A. (2003-12-04). "The New Boss". Tucson Weekly. Retrieved 2011-01-12.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Kalaitzidis, Konstantinos (2007-05-31). "New O'odham chairman wants to do business". Tucson Citizen. Retrieved 2011-01-12.
- ^ a b c d e f "Tohono O'odham Nation elects new chairwoman". Associated Press. News From Indian Country. 2007-05-29. Retrieved 2011-01-12.
- ^ Pallack, Becky (2007-08-03). "New O'odham chairman inaugurated: Ned Norris Jr. has worked for nation 30 years". Arizona Republic. Highbeam Research. Retrieved 2011-01-13.