Cheryl Andrews-Maltais was elected to her fifth term as chairperson of the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) tribal council, news outlets reported Monday.
“I am so grateful to have the confidence and support of my people,” Andrews-Maltais said in a press release obtained by the Vineyard Gazette. “Their continued support energizes me and makes the hard work and long hours all worth it.”
Andrews-Maltais was confirmed during a general tribal membership meeting Sunday. She received 151 votes while her opponent, Aquinnah Cultural Center program director NaDaizja Bolling, received 127.
Since 2008, Andrews-Maltais has served as tribal chairperson. She served as chairperson for six years before running and winning re-election in 2017. Between her third and fourth terms, she served as senior advisor to the Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs within the Department of the Interior during the Obama Administration, according to Indian Country Today.
The election was conducted via mail-in ballots after historically holding elections in person. A logistical issue, according to the tribal website, prevented a hybrid vote of in-person and mail-in ballots from being held, the Vineyard Gazette reported.
Bolling aligned herself with a new coalition of tribal council candidates, Linda Coombs, Camille Madison, incumbent Kristina Hook-Leslie and Kayla Darcy Manning. Coombs, Madison and Hook-Leslie were each elected to the council, while Manning was defeated in her run for tribal council secretary.
“We shook things up with this campaign,” Bolling said to the Vineyard Gazette in a text message. “I did not win the chairperson race, but three of the five members of our slate won their seats, so it’s still a victory in my eyes.”
Andrews-Maltais will be the longest-serving tribal chairperson since the tribe was federally recognized in 1987, according to the Vineyard Gazette.
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