RoseAnne Archibald wins AFN national chief race after fifth ballot

RoseAnne Archibald has won the Assembly of First Nations general election, becoming the first female national chief in its nearly 40-year history.

After five rounds of ballots over the course of two days in which no candidate gained the 60 per cent of votes required to win, Reginald Bellerose, chief of Muskowekwan First Nation in Saskatchewan, conceded the election to Ms. Archibald on July 8.

“The AFN has made her-story today,” the former Ontario regional chief said in her acceptance speech Thursday evening. She succeeds outgoing national chief Perry Bellegarde, who led the organization since 2014 and did not run for re-election.

Ms. Archibald is no stranger to breaking the glass ceiling. She was the first woman and youngest chief to be elected for Taykwa Tagamou Nation in 1990, the first woman and youngest deputy grand chief for Nishnawbe Aski Nation, and the first female and youngest grand chief for Mushkegowuk Council. She also became the first woman to be elected as Ontario regional chief in 2018.

Ms. Archibald said First Nations have been “awakened” to how settler Canadians have benefited from colonial practices, and how Indigenous people have been the target of genocide.

“We are going to stare straight in the face and kick colonial policies to the curb. Change is happening,” she said. “We will not be silenced. Goodness and love will prevail.”

Ms. Archibald said that while the First Nations have their differences, there is much more that they share. “We all want our children to grow up proud and surrounded by love, culture, ceremony, and language in safe and vibrant communities,” she said.

“We want a Mother Earth for them that is not threatened by climate change, wildfires, and a warming planet. We want to be good ancestors and leave a strong legacy for the seven generations ahead,” she said.

Ms. Archibald pledged to be a national chief that would serve with humility, knowing that her leadership “is a sacred responsibility and duty.”

“Today marks the beginning of our journey together. I look forward to seeing you in your communities and visiting. I will stand with you. I will be by your side. I will support you. And when you call me, I will answer,” Ms. Archibald said.

‘We are going to stare straight in the face and kick colonial policies to the curb,’ newly elected AFN National Chief RoseAnne Archibald said in her acceptance speech. Screenshot courtesy of the Assembly of First Nations

Ms. Archibald said she is filled with hope and looking forward to the path ahead, knowing that “our allies are listening to us,” and will be there to help heal the country. She said the First Nations would walk forward together to “honour the little ones that are being recovered across this country” and work to ensure that the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 Calls to Action would be implemented “so that this never happens again to our children, ever.”

Ms. Archibald gave thanks to all the chiefs who endorsed her, particularly Chief Lance Heyman and Emily Whetung, her campaign staff, and everyone who donated to and supported her campaign. She also gave special thanks to her fellow candidates, saying she saw the group of them as “competitive siblings.”

“We spent a lot of time together. I think I got to know each one of you a little, and I have respect for each one of you. And I’m so grateful that we travelled this road in an honourable way together.”

Political leaders offered their congratulations to the new national chief.

“Congratulations to National Chief RoseAnne Archibald! I have really enjoyed our productive working relationship throughout the pandemic ensuring First Nations in Ontario are safe and healthy. I am excited to continue that work with her Canada-wide as AFN National Chief,” Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller (Ville-Marie–Le Sud-Ouest–Île-des-Soeurs, Que.) said on Twitter.

“I look forward to working with you to strengthen the relationship between the federal government and Indigenous peoples,” Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole (Durham, Ont.) said in a tweet.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh (Burnaby South, B.C.) tweeted: “You have a friend in New Democrats—I look forward to continuing our work in pursuit of justice and the advancement of reconciliation.”

The seven candidates for national chief included Ms. Archibald; Mr. Bellerose; Jodi Calahoo-Stonehouse, a member of Michel First Nation in Alberta; Lee Crowchild, former Xakiji (chief) of Tsuut’ina First Nation in Alberta; Alvin Fiddler, grand chief of Nishnawbe Aski Nation in Ontario; Kevin Hart, former Manitoba regional chief; and Cathy Martin, a councillor from Listuguj Mi’gmag Nation in Quebec.

The first round of voting ended at 3 p.m. on July 7, with Ms. Archibald receiving 90 votes, Mr. Bellerose receiving 91, Mr. Fiddler receiving 79, Mr. Hart with 44, and Ms. Calahoo-Stonehouse with 41. Ms. Martin and Mr. Crowchild, who received 15 and seven votes, respectively, dropped off the ballot for the next round.

After the second round of voting ended at 7 p.m., Mr. Bellerose received 113 votes, Ms. Archibald received 110, Mr. Fiddler received 76 and Ms. Calahoo-Stonehouse received 27. Mr. Hart, with 25 votes, dropped off the ballot.

The third round of voting finished at 10 p.m., with Mr. Bellerose receiving 144 votes, Ms. Archibald receiving 129, Mr. Fiddler receiving 64, and Ms. Calahoo-Stonehouse receiving 20.

Shortly after the results of the third round of voting were announced, Mr. Fiddler went on the AFN’s general assembly livestream to withdraw his ballot, acknowledging that there was “no other path forward.”

“This evening I spoke with the elders that are here with me to seek advice on how we should move forward. I respect their advice. At this time, I will be announcing that I am withdrawing my candidacy,” Mr. Fiddler said. “Even though it’s a difficult decision, I know it’s the right one.”

During his speech, Mr. Fiddler thanked his “incredible campaign team,” his supporters for their “outpouring of expressions of support and love for myself and my family,” and his fellow candidates. “Even though we didn’t meet personally during this campaign, I got to know them really well, so I want to acknowledge all of them and their families and communities,” he said.

Mr. Fiddler threw his support behind Ms. Archibald to be the next national chief, encouraging his supporters to help elect the “first-ever woman national chief of the First Nations.”

“I was talking to my daughter earlier, and I said ‘that could be you someday.’ I think that’s something that we should all be sharing and telling our daughters or granddaughters, that they can hold these offices and that they can lead our nations,” Mr. Fiddler said.

Ms. Calahoo-Stonehouse did not have enough support to continue to the fourth round. During her concession speech, she gave thanks to her voters, as well as the chiefs that nominated her, “who believed in systemic change and who believed in advocating for Mother Earth, and for our children.”

Ms. Calahoo-Stonehouse also gave her tacit support to Ms. Archibald, saying she looked forward to “seeing a matriarch lead the Assembly of First Nations.”

A fourth round of voting, which finished at 3 p.m. on July 8, saw Ms. Archibald receive 206 votes and Mr. Bellerose receive 176.

The fifth and final round that wrapped at 6 p.m. saw Ms. Archibald win 205 votes and Mr. Bellerose win 144.

Shortly before the fifth round began, Ms. Archibald posted a Facebook message where she asked Mr. Bellerose to concede. “This is a critical time for Canada as our people and we need our women to represent us in a traditional matriarchal manner to address the many injustices,” the message read. “We saw yesterday that Grand Chief Fiddler, out of great love for women, particularly his daughters, has made room and space for me to become the first woman National Chief. Reg, please follow Alvin’s honourable path forward.”

Mr. Bellerose initially refused to concede, saying he had been “given the mandate by our voters to move into the fifth ballot.”

“Our Saskatchewan Women Leadership have encouraged our team to move forward. We have led in the previous 3 ballots and know we have strong support across this country,” Mr. Bellerose said in a tweet.

The results of a sixth ballot were planned to be released at 8:30 p.m., but Mr. Bellerose conceded the election shortly after 6:30 p.m..

The Hill Times

First round:

RoseAnne Archibald: 90 votes (24.52 per cent)

Reginald Bellerose: 91 votes (24.80 per cent)

Alvin Fiddler: 79 votes (21.53 per cent)

Kevin Hart: 44 votes (11.99 per cent)

Jodi Calahoo-Stonehouse: 41 votes (11.17 per cent)

Cathy Martin: 15 votes (4.09 per cent)

Lee Crowchild: 7 votes (1.91 per cent)

367 ballots cast

Second round:

Reginald Bellerose: 113 votes (32.2 per cent)

RoseAnne Archibald: 110 votes (31.3 per cent)

Alvin Fiddler: 76 votes (21.7 per cent)

Jodi Calahoo-Stonehouse: 27 votes (7.7 per cent)

Kevin Hart: 25 votes (7.1 per cent)

351 ballots cast

Third round:

Reginald Bellerose: 144 votes (40.3 per cent)

RoseAnne Archibald: 129 votes (36.2 per cent)

Alvin Fiddler: 64 votes (17.9 per cent)

Jodi Calahoo-Stonehouse: 20 votes (5.6 per cent)

357 ballots cast

Fourth round:

RoseAnne Archibald: 206 votes (50.7 per cent)

Reginald Bellerose: 176 votes (43.3 per cent)

383 ballots cast

Fifth Round:

RoseAnne Archibald: 205 votes (50.5 per cent)

Reginald Bellerose: 144 votes (35.5 per cent)

350 ballots cast