Posted on Jan 11, 2023
Buu Nygren has been sworn in as the next Navajo Nation president
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https://www.npr.org/2023/01/10/ [login to see] /buu-nygren-navajo-nation-president-inauguration
Buu Nygren was sworn in Tuesday as the next president of the vast Navajo Nation, a job that will test his ability to make good on promises to deliver water, electricity and broadband to tens of thousands of residents who don't have it.
Nygren beat out incumbent President Jonathan Nez in the tribe's general election by about 3,500 votes. Nygren was joined by his wife Jasmine, daughter Evelyn and grandmother Marilyn Slim as he took the oath of office during a ceremony that highlighted the challenges he grew up with and, later, academic and business successes that helped him ascend as the youngest person to hold the tribal presidency.
Nygren stood amid hand-woven Navajo rugs and blankets as he addressed the crowd in a mix of Navajo and English, saying his administration's mission is simple: bring basic services to Navajo people so they can do more than survive.
"I will not hesitate. I will do whatever it takes to make sure that our people have a chance, our people have an opportunity to make something of themselves." he said. "That's all they want."
Buu Nygren was sworn in Tuesday as the next president of the vast Navajo Nation, a job that will test his ability to make good on promises to deliver water, electricity and broadband to tens of thousands of residents who don't have it.
Nygren beat out incumbent President Jonathan Nez in the tribe's general election by about 3,500 votes. Nygren was joined by his wife Jasmine, daughter Evelyn and grandmother Marilyn Slim as he took the oath of office during a ceremony that highlighted the challenges he grew up with and, later, academic and business successes that helped him ascend as the youngest person to hold the tribal presidency.
Nygren stood amid hand-woven Navajo rugs and blankets as he addressed the crowd in a mix of Navajo and English, saying his administration's mission is simple: bring basic services to Navajo people so they can do more than survive.
"I will not hesitate. I will do whatever it takes to make sure that our people have a chance, our people have an opportunity to make something of themselves." he said. "That's all they want."
Buu Nygren has been sworn in as the next Navajo Nation president
Posted from npr.orgPosted in these groups: 
Native Americans
Native Americans
Posted >1 y ago
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I wish him luck in getting needed services to his tribal members. Those are really just basic health concerns that everyone should have unless they have opted to live off grid.
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MSG Stan Hutchison
My sister-in-law just got running water last year, and electricity 4 years ago. She is 85 years old and has lived in the same house for over 50 years.
There is a lot of land to cover to deliver those services to each home on the reservation.
There is a lot of land to cover to deliver those services to each home on the reservation.
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel they should have already had those infrastructures.
..."Nygren, who is half Vietnamese, said he never knew his father. He was raised on the Utah portion of the reservation in a home without electricity or running water, he said. He has a background in construction management and has said he expects tribal citizens to hold him accountable as president — a point he emphasized in his speech Tuesday.
He pledged to work closely with the 24 members of the Navajo Nation Council who also were sworn in Tuesday. About one-third of the council will be women — a record number. The council often is seen as more powerful than the presidency and is the path through which big agenda items have to move.
Nez and the previous council laid the groundwork for infrastructure projects using money the tribe received in federal coronavirus relief aid. In one of his last actions, Nez vetoed legislation Monday to expand oil and gas exploration and development, including for helium, on the reservation. He said the affected communities hadn’t reached consensus, and concerns over profit-sharing and health went unresolved."
..."Nygren, who is half Vietnamese, said he never knew his father. He was raised on the Utah portion of the reservation in a home without electricity or running water, he said. He has a background in construction management and has said he expects tribal citizens to hold him accountable as president — a point he emphasized in his speech Tuesday.
He pledged to work closely with the 24 members of the Navajo Nation Council who also were sworn in Tuesday. About one-third of the council will be women — a record number. The council often is seen as more powerful than the presidency and is the path through which big agenda items have to move.
Nez and the previous council laid the groundwork for infrastructure projects using money the tribe received in federal coronavirus relief aid. In one of his last actions, Nez vetoed legislation Monday to expand oil and gas exploration and development, including for helium, on the reservation. He said the affected communities hadn’t reached consensus, and concerns over profit-sharing and health went unresolved."
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