Jonathan Nez, the president of the Navajo Nation from 2019 to 2023, is running for U.S. Representative as a Democrat in Arizona鈥檚 2nd Congressional District.
CD2 covers more than half of the state and includes 12 tribes. It鈥檚 one of the largest districts in the country and includes some of the most rural areas in the southwest United States.
鈥�Being a Native American, they have yet to hear a voice like mine in Washington D.C.,鈥� said Nez.
Nez started in local government at age 29 when he became vice president of the Shonto Chapter of the Navajo Nation .
鈥淢y constituency then was Navajo citizens, and we were able to bring historic amounts of resources and funding to the Navajo people, especially during the pandemic. B ringing dollars for infrastructure, getting water, electricity, broadband telecommunication into the rural parts of the nation, and I see the same issues that rural Arizona has,鈥� said Nez.
Nez s aid his top political priorities are affordable healthcare, mitigating wildfires, water access from the Colorado River, and protection from uranium mining.
鈥淭here are high rates of cancers in our communities, you know. It could be from the nuclear testing, it could be from the groundwater contamination, it could be because of the over 500 - plus uranium mines that are there on the land,鈥� said Nez.
鈥淭he folks here in in Congressional district t wo are wanting someone that knows about a district and that has been amongst them. I was born in this district. I served in this district. Now I'm still in the district, unlike my opponent,鈥� said Nez.
Nez is running as a Democrat against incumbent Republican Elijah Crane, who took office in 2023.
Crane refused to accept Arizona PBS's request for a televised debate with Nez, which took place on Thursday (Sept. 5), with just Nez on stage.
If he wins in November, Nez will be Arizona's first Indigenous person to serve in Congress.
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