Watts’ letter says petitioners believe there is “substantial evidence” that the Election Commission and Attorney General’s Office violated their civil rights in several ways, including the disqualification of Walkingstick.

“The focus is not on David Walkingstick nor Meredith Frailey,” Watts said in an email response to Tulsa World questions. “The focus should be on the thousands of Cherokees who were disenfranchised from the voting process and their right to vote taken from them.”

Watts served on the Cherokee Nation Tribal Council from 2003-2015. She lost her bid for the District 14 seat in the general election in June. She said she and the other petition signers are hopeful for a new election that is “fair and transparent with BIA oversight.”

“Many Cherokee voters were disenfranchised by the Cherokee Nation Election Commission’s unfair and late disqualification of Chief candidate David Walkingstick when other valid complaints were being requested and not being investigated,” Watts said. “This is apparent in the steep drop-off in actual voter turn-out of 5,500 less voters than 2015’s General Election.”

In a phone interview, Hoskin called it a “wonderful day of unity” as the Cherokee people celebrated democracy with the transition of one elected administration to the next.