WASHINGTON, D.C. — The election of Donald Trump as president and the pending Republican takeover of the U.S. Congress are already having impacts on Indian Country’s agenda.

Tribes and tribal organizations nationwide are supporting the nomination of Patrice Kunesh to be chair of the National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC). They have cited her decades of expertise in government and economic policy as key in leading the federal agency that oversees the $41.9 billion tribal casino industry.

But Republicans, who are currently in the minority in the U.S. Senate, are not on board with the nominee — especially one chosen by outgoing President Joe Biden, a Democrat. At a short business meeting in the nation’s capital on Wednesday, they voted in person and by proxy against Kunesh in hopes of derailing her rise to the leadership position.

Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Oklahoma), a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, did not explain why he showed up in person to vote against Kunesh. He wasn’t present for her confirmation hearing in September and he doesn’t often participate in activities of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs despite being a member since January 2023.

Mullin, however, did confirm that he wanted a recorded vote on Kunesh’s nomination. Such roll calls are rare at the committee, which typically operates in a bipartisan fashion on issues of importance in Indian Country.

“Please proceed with the roll call,” Mullin said in his only comments at the meeting, which lasted less than 10 minutes.

Mullin’s request came after Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), the Republican vice chair of the committee, endorsed Kunesh to be chair of NIGC. She welcomed the nominee’s pledge to work on combatting human trafficking at tribal casinos.

“I will be supporting her nomination as she moves out of committee, as I believe she is a qualified nominee for the position of chair,” Murkowski said of Kunesh.

“I will be supporting her nomination,” Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) said of Patrice Kunesh to be Chair of National Indian Gaming Commission.

Fellow Republicans on @IndianCommittee did not. Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) voted "No" in person as other GOP members voted "No" by proxy. pic.twitter.com/4RDuBpC4zO

— indianz.com (@indianz) November 20, 2024

Murkowski held true to her promise, joining the six Democrats who attended the meeting to support Kunesh’s nomination. Altogether, their presence was more than enough to overcome the Republican objections by a vote of 7 to 4.

“This is a personal issue for me,” observed Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minnesota), who knows Kunesh from years of working together in their home state of Minnesota. “She is a strong colleague and friend.”

“I note, also, that she has successfully earned bipartisan support for previous nominations — including from members of this committee,” Smith added, a reference to Kunesh’s successful confirmation as Commissioner of the Administration for Native Americans in 2023.

But Trump’s win on November 5 and the subsequent Republican takeover of the Senate have GOP lawmakers like Mullin seeking to gain new advantages on Capitol Hill. Since returning to work on Monday, they have tried to derail the confirmations of federal judges who were nominated by Biden.

With Democrats still holding a narrow majority in the Senate, the chamber has been able to approve the judicial nominees. In response, Trump lashed out on Wednesday afternoon in a social media post that was reshared by Mullin shortly before the meeting where Kunesh was considered.

“Republican Senators need to Show Up and Hold the Line — No more Judges confirmed before Inauguration Day!” Trump wrote in the post.

As the only Native American in the Senate, Mullin has seen his own profile rise, though it’s not because of his legislative work. He’s been an outspoken and prominent supporter of Trump, going from the campaign trail to numerous appearances on television networks in the last several weeks.

“Thank you, President Trump! Proud to be in the fight to Make America Great Again,” Mullin said in a November 18 post he currently has pinned to his @senmullin account on X. The post features a screenshot of Trump misspelling the lawmaker’s name as “Markwayne Mullen” while praising him for an interview on Fox News, a favorite of conservative politicians.

Kunesh, who traces her ancestry to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, must still survive a vote on the floor of the Senate. Time is running out to do so, with the 118th Congress set to conclude by the end of December.

“For the record, Ms. Kunesh’s nomination is supported by the National Congress of American Indian of American Indians, the Coalition of Large Tribes, the Native American Finance Officers Associations and individual tribes,” Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), the outgoing Democratic chair of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, said at the business meeting on Wednesday.

“The committee has received no letters opposed to her nomination,” said Schatz.

If confirmed by the Senate, Kunesh would succeed E. Sequoyah Simermeyer as chair of the NIGC. Simermeyer, who was nominated when Trump was president, departed the agency on February 24 after more than four years on the job.

The NIGC consists of three members: the chair and two commissioners. As dictated by the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, only the chair position requires nomination by the president and confirmation by the Senate. The other two members are appointed by the Secretary of the Interior.

According to IGRA, “at least” two members of the NIGC “shall be enrolled members of any Indian tribe.” While Kunesh is not enrolled in any tribe, the other two commissioners are.

Sharon Avery is a citizen of the Saginaw Chippewa Tribe in Michigan, according to the NIGC. She joined the agency in May following her appointment by Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland.

Haaland, a citizen of the Pueblo of Laguna who is the first Native person to lead the Department of the Interior, also reappointed Jeannie Hovland to the NIGC. Hovland, a citizen of the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe in South Dakota, joined the agency at the end of the first Trump administration.

Despite the NIGC currently being down to two commissioners, with Avery serving as “acting” chair, the agency is able to continue its work in regulating the tribal gaming industry. It is rare for a matter to require consideration, or a vote, by all three members.

The following seven members of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs voted in support of Patrice Kunesh to serve as chair of the National Indian Gaming Commission at a business meeting on November 20, 2024.

• Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Chair
• Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Vice Chair
• Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Washington)
• Sen. Jon Tester (D-Montana)
• Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nevada)
• Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minnesota)
• Sen. Ben Ray Lujan (D-New Mexico)

The following four members of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs voted against Patrice Kunesh:

• Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Oklahoma), in person
• Sen. John Hoeven (R-North Dakota), by proxy
• Sen. Steve Daines (R-Montana), by proxy
• Sen. Mike Rounds (R-South Dakota), by proxy

Patrice H. Kunesh, of Standing Rock Lakota descent, has committed her career to public service, including several positions at the tribal, state, and federal level. Kunesh currently serves as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Native American Affairs and the Commissioner of the Administration for Native Americans in the Administration for Children and Families at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Prior to joining HHS, Kunesh worked at the Native American Rights Fund, where she began her legal career, and served as in-house Counsel to the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation and on the faculty at the University of South Dakota School of Law. Kunesh also held appointments as the Deputy Under Secretary for Rural Development at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, as the Deputy Solicitor for Indian Affairs at the U.S. Department of the Interior, and as a member of the U.S. Treasury Community Development Advisory Board (CDFI Fund) as the representative for Native communities. Additionally, she established the Center for Indian Country Development, an economic policy research initiative at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Kunesh also founded Peȟíŋ Haha Consulting, a social enterprise committed to fostering culturally centered Native economic development.

Kunesh holds a J.D. from the University of Colorado School of Law and an MPA from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

The Senate Committee on Indian Affairs is getting back to work as the 118th Congress comes to a close. What’s on the agenda? Tune in at 3pm Eastern. #Senate #SCIA #118th @IndianCommittee pic.twitter.com/YVSjUroO6Y

— indianz.com (@indianz) November 20, 2024

Learn more about the Business Meeting to consider the Nomination of Patrice H. Kunesh, of Minnesota, to be Chair of the National Indian Gaming Commission, S. 4643 & S. 4998.https://t.co/rlx5DKPnl4

— indianz.com (@indianz) November 20, 2024

“I will be supporting her nomination,” Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) said of Patrice Kunesh to be Chair of National Indian Gaming Commission.

Fellow Republicans on @IndianCommittee did not. Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) voted "No" in person as other GOP members voted "No" by proxy. pic.twitter.com/4RDuBpC4zO

— indianz.com (@indianz) November 20, 2024

But Democrats, joined by Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), were able to approve nomination of Patrice Kunesh to be Chair of National Indian Gaming Commission by vote of 7 to 4. Kunesh still needs full vote in US Senate as #118th Congress comes to a close. https://t.co/ykhoN3KajI

— indianz.com (@indianz) November 20, 2024

YES votes for Patrice Kunesh to be Chair of @NIGCgov

Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii)
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska)
Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Washington)
Sen. Jon Tester (D-Montana)
Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nevada)
Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minnesota)
Sen. Ben Ray Lujan (D-New Mexico)

— indianz.com (@indianz) November 20, 2024

NO votes for Patrice Kunesh to be Chair of National Indian Gaming Commission, federal agency regulating $41 billion tribal casino industry:

Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Oklahoma)
Sen. John Hoeven (R-North Dakota)
Sen. Steve Daines (R-Montana)
Sen. Mike Rounds (R-South Dakota)

— indianz.com (@indianz) November 20, 2024

Business Meeting to consider the Nomination of Patrice H. Kunesh, of Minnesota, to be Chair of the National Indian Gaming Commission, S. 4643 & S. 4998 (November 20, 2024)