'An Abject Failure' : Some Tribal Leaders Look To Unseat Gov. Kevin Stitt In 2022

A meeting amongst Oklahoma’s most powerful Tribes has Native American leaders looking to unseat Gov. Kevin Stitt in this year’s election.

“I think he’s been an abject failure,” Cherokee Nation Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. said at a virtual meeting of the Inter-Tribal Council of the 5 Civilized Tribes.

“Hopefully we can get someone in office that’s going to work with the tribes and not against us,” Muscogee Nation Chief David Hall said.

Chiefs of the Cherokee, Muscogee and Choctaw Nations, together representing more than 400,000 Oklahomans, voiced continued displeasure with Stitt, a Cherokee Nation Citizen.

“This governor has done the most damage to state tribal relations, I think, than any governor in history of the state,” Hoskin said.

The indigenous leaders highlighted strained relationships over gaming, hunting and fishing and tribal sovereignty under the Supreme Court's McGirt ruling.

“We need to desperately see who we’re going to support for governor in this upcoming election,” Choctaw Nation Chief Gary Batton said.

“Governor Stitt took an oath to uphold the laws of the state of Oklahoma and will never stop demanding fairness for all 4 million Oklahomans and equal protection under the law,” Stitt Communications Director Charlie Hannema said in a statement. “He will fight tooth and nail to protect Oklahoma’s sovereignty and will not give an inch as long as he is governor.”

The Governor’s re-election campaign passed along a 2021 poll of 500 Oklahomans indicating he has a 63 percent approval rating among Native Americans.

“No matter who’s elected, we can certainly do better than Governor Stitt,” Hoskin said.