On Wednesday, November 20, the Ho-Chunk Nation Election
Board hosted an oath of office ceremony for newly elected Legislator Stephanie
Begay. Begay was declared the winner of
the October 26 Special Runoff Election.
The Special Election was due to the resignation of Legislator Carly
Lincoln.
The Swearing-In Ceremony was originally scheduled to begin
at 10:00 AM in the Tribal Office Building near Black River Falls, Wisc. At the request of Begay, the ceremony was
pushed up to 9:00 AM so that she and her family could attend the funeral of a
beloved family member. The Ho-Chunk
Nation Election Board honored her request.
Master of Ceremonies was Matthew Mann, Gordon Thunder
offered a word of prayer, and opening remarks were made by Traditional Chief
Clayton Winneshiek and President Marlon WhiteEagle.
“I was talking to our Creator this morning, that whatever
she (Stephanie Begay) does that it’s good for everybody, all Ho-Chunk,” stated
Traditional Chief Clayton Winneshiek. “She has the Nation in her heart, in her
mind that whatever she decides on in these voting processes that she looks at
the Nation as a whole, not as an area.
We have so much of that going on now.”
“One of the things my Dad taught me was that it starts with
the love of our people. It starts right
there at home and from there and a circle outward that goes to your extended
family, out to the community, and it gets bigger,” President Marlon WhiteEagle
said. “After a while, it goes out to
your neighbors. You think about your
neighbors and their safety and wellbeing.
It goes to the whole Nation. So,
what these votes represent is a level of trust that the community has within
you (Stephanie Begay). Remember that.”
Andrew Blackhawk Legion 129 and Auxiliary Post 129 were on
hand to post the colors. The Bearheart
Singers rendered the appropriate songs.
Ho-Chunk Nation Election Board Chairperson Libby Fairchild administered
the oath of office.
After the oath of office, Stephanie Begay was allowed to say
a few words. She expressed her gratitude
to several individuals, her family, her supporters, and those that voted for
her. Stephanie Begay is the daughter of
Francis and Roberta Decorah and she has two sons.
“Those of you who shared your words of wisdom with me, I
appreciate it. I take it to heart,”
expressed Stephanie Begay.
Begay has less than two years in office. A term for an elected Legislator is four
years but Stephanie Begay will be serving the remainder of Representative Carly
Lincoln’s term. According to the
official results of the Special Runoff Election, Begay received 140 over Robert
Funmaker, Jr.’s 81 total votes.