Rep. Ben Ray Lujan (D-New Mexico) is the new ranking Democrat on the House Subcommittee on Indian and Alaska Native Affairs.

Lujan takes over the spot from Rep. Dan Boren (D-Oklahoma), who is leaving Congress at the end of the 112th session. Lujan was welcomed to his new post by Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska), the chairman of the subcommittee, at a hearing yesterday.

"I'm going to miss Mr. Boren but I'm confident that this young man will fill his shoes," Young said of Lujan.

"My recent appointment to this position ... is a great honor and it's truly a privilege to serve Native communities in this leadership role," Lujan observed.

Lujan represents New Mexico's 3rd Congressional district, which includes over a dozen Pueblo tribes, the Jicarilla Apache Nation and parts of the Navajo NationNambe Pueblo.

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