Voters of the Blackfeet Nation of Montana ousted longtime chairman Earl Old Person and agreed to an overhaul of the tribal constitution.

Henry Butterfly defeated Old Person by 1,860 votes to 999. A new chairman of the business committee will be chosen on July 12.

Voters voted 2,322 to 454 in favor of a referendum to add executive, legislative, judicial, traditional and ethical branches to the tribal government. A five-member committee will spend the next year to develop the new constitution..

In a second referendum, voters banned alcohol sales during the North American Indian Days, from July 10-14, and the Heart Butte Society Celebration, from August 7-10. The ban passed by a vote of 1,701 to 1,112.

Get the Story:
Blackfeet vote for change (The Great Falls Tribune 6/25)
Blackfeet to vote on constitutional overhaul (The Great Falls Tribune 6/22)