No matter who prevails in next week’s tribal elections, the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians (GTB) will soon be swearing in a brand-new leader.

David Arroyo (pictured left) has served as GTB’s tribal chairman since 2020, and had previously been a member of the seven-seat GTB Tribal Council since 2004. But Arroyo opted not to seek reelection for either role this year, clearing the way for some new blood at the very top of the tribe's leadership pyramid.

New blood is exactly what the chairperson’s office will get next Tuesday, May 7, when GTB tribal members vote to select just the ninth person to serve in the tribal chairperson capacity since GTB was federally recognized as a sovereign nation in 1980. While past chair Thurlow “Sam” McClellan had sought a return to office this election cycle, results from last month’s GTB primary contest left him just one vote shy of advancing to Tuesday’s general election. Now, two candidates who have never before served as tribal chair will battle for the role.

The two candidates are Brian Napont (pictured center) and Sandra Witherspoon (pictured right), who eked out narrow wins in a crowded and competitive primary field last month. Napont led the way with 112 votes (23 percent of the vote), while Witherspoon trailed by just five votes. McClellan missed a general election berth by a single ballot, finishing the primary with 106 votes to Witherspoon’s 107. The other two candidates, Theresa Marshall and Dana Greensky, earned 90 votes and 73 votes, respectively.

(Per GTB’s official accounting of primary results, there were 939 tribal members who were eligible to vote this cycle. 290 of them cast ballots for the primary, for a voter turnout of 31 percent.)

First voted onto the tribal council in 2008, Napont was most recently reelected as a councilor during the GTB’s 2022 elections. Speaking to the Leelanau Ticker in the leadup to that race, Napont touted his experience with tribal constitution, tribal ordinances, and federal and state treaties among his qualifications, along with degrees or certifications in business administration, water studies, and construction management.

Witherspoon, meanwhile, is a longtime public official with experience in both tribal and non-tribal capacities. She was part of the tribal council for multiple terms in the 2000s and the 2010s, and even served as vice-chair from 2008 to 2012. More recently, she has held the post of Charlevoix Township Clerk. If Witherspoon were to win the tribal election, she would become only the second woman to hold the GTB chairperson seat – and the first since Ardith “Dodie” Harris Chambers, who led the tribe to federal recognition in 1980 and served as its first-ever chairman.

While Napont’s vote tally in the primary elections may seem to indicate a slight frontrunner status, GTB election history has defied such easy characterizations. Four years ago, McClellan entered the chairman race as both the incumbent (he served as tribal chair from 2016 to 2020, and even survived a recall election in 2018 to hold on to his seat) and as the top vote-getter in the primary race (he earned 183 votes to Arroyo’s 139). But the tides shifted in the general election, with Arroyo notching 285 votes to McClellan’s 231 to win the tribal chairman position.

Beyond the chairman race, Tuesday’s GTB election will see six candidates competing for three up-for-grabs tribal council seats. At least two of those three seats are guaranteed to change hands this year: In the primary, incumbent Theresa Marshall ran for both tribal chairman and tribal council, but failed to earn enough votes in either race to advance to the general election. Meanwhile, Vice Chair Robert E. Kewaygoshkum – a former tribal chairman himself, having led the GTB for two terms from 2000 to 2008 – did not seek reelection this year.

The third expiring seat is currently held by Treasurer Donna Swallows, who is seeking reelection – and who was the top vote-getter at last month’s primary, with 151 votes.

In addition to seeking the chairman’s office, Witherspoon is also a candidate for tribal council, having tallied 144 votes in the primary. As such, even if Witherspoon loses the chairperson election, she may still end up on the council. The same is true for Napont, whose tribal council seat doesn’t expire until 2026; he would retain the seat even if Witherspoon were to beat him in the chairman race.

Other candidates for the open tribal council seats include Angelina Raphael (150 votes in the primary), Anna Miller (149), Scott Lewis (133), and Tanya Raphael (114).

Barring election challenges, disqualifications of candidates for regulatory compliance issues, or a need for any kind of runoff election, GTB election results are expected to be finalized and certified on May 15, with swearing-in ceremonies for the new chairperson and councilors tentatively scheduled for Friday, May 17 at 2pm.

In addition to Chambers, Kewaygoshkum, McClellan, and Arroyo, the complete list of former GTB chairmen includes Joseph "Buddy" Raphael (1980-1996), George Bennett (1996-2000), Derek Bailey (2008-2012), and Al Pedwaydon (2012-2016).