Cladoosby re-elected NCAI president

SAN DIEGO, Calif. – Swinomish Indian Tribal Community Chairman Brian Cladoosby was re-elected as president of the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) by unanimous acclamation yesterday at the group’s annual meeting in San Diego.



“Never in my wildest dreams as a little Indian boy growing up on a tiny reservation in the Northwest corner of our country did I ever imagine that I could have been given the opportunity to serve an organization like the National Congress of American Indians,” said Cladoosby. “Only through the love of the Creator.”



Cladoosby said his priorities as NCAI president will remain focused on future generations by strengthening tribal education, health care, mental health and family support systems, by protecting treaty rights, tribal lands and natural resources, and by ensuring that elected officials at the local, state and federal level hear and understand the aspirations and challenges of Indian youth.



“I will work every day to do what I can to make sure that NCAI lives up to the goals of tribal leaders past and that our work is worthy of the hopes and dreams of our children,” said Cladoosby.



The NCAI president is elected every two years. Cladoosby was first elected NCAI president in 2013 by a margin of 25 votes.



In 2015, Cladoosby was uncontested in his re-election campaign, the first time in recent memory that any candidate for the position did not draw an opponent.



Cladoosby has been Chairman of the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community for 19 years and on the tribal Senate for 31 years.



The National Congress of American Indians, founded in 1944, is the oldest, largest and most representative American Indian and Alaska Native organization serving the broad interests of tribal governments and communities.