when i first ran four years ago, people were shocked when i won the primary. reporter: lovejoy is favored to become the first female president of the navajo nation. the largest tribe in the united states. ifhe defeats the current vice president, she will become steward of a $96 million budget, at a time of 50% plus unemployment. beingerentof the na nio equivalen to beinthgovern oftern state. the navajo governmen is sponsible for law an order, edatn, public safety, health. reporter: about 300,000 navajo occupy 27,000 square miles across utah, arizona, and new mexico. at the navajo nation s fair, lovejoy was treated like royalty. but not all navajo are ready for a female president. the navajo has always had a tradition of saying that a man
mistakes, trying to paint him in contrast to kirk. kirk s m.o.s is to say i made mistakes and i will be accountable for them. all right. thank you. stay with cnn on election night, november 2nd, for up to the minute results. the kind of analysis you can get only here on cnn. i ll be manning our cnn election headquarters along with the best political team on television. with about 12 days to go before the contentious midterm elections that could potentially change the face of power in washington, there s a major race brewing on the other side of the country, and it could potentially offer something unique. here s cnn s specia corrpondent soledad o brien. reporter: linda lovejoy is the face of history in the making. a woman who will change politics come november 2nd. but she s not a candidate in the midterm congressional elections. she s running for president.
telecommunications and utility issues. and wants to bring that experience back to the reservation. we are still living in the 18th century circumstances. no running water. no electricity. reporter: she might get her chance. if the navajo people decide to take navajo politics back to the future. soledad o brien reporting for us. lovejoy s opponent is the current vice president of the navajo. he said he has no issue with lovejoy s gender, but shelly says her experience in new mexico legislature does not make up for her lack of experience in a reservation politics. lovejoy often notes she was raised speaking navajo in a two-room tepee. a poll has her leading by 17%. be sure to tune in later tonight for the cnn black in america special almighty debt.
should run the be president to run the navajo nation. the cultural base reporter: kevin govner says electing a woman is a flash from the past as a window on the future. a woman plays a key role in the very creation of the people themselves. but all of that was sort of cast to the side as the u.s. set out to americanize tribal cultures. the traditional roles that women played were obliterated. reporter: with term limits preventing the current president from seeking re-election, in-fighting among tribal leaders has some calling for a return to those times when navajo women maintained a tight knit culture. she will clean house because she s a woman. woman is stronger than a man. the navajo nation is ready for a change. reporter: lovejoy is not political novice. a new mexico state senator, she is well versed in
ugliest races right now. rand paul talks to cnn about his opponent s ad attacks and the allegations about his past. and what do you think when you see someone in muslim garb on an airplane? one journalist admitted on national tv that he gets nervous. now he s been fired. did he deserve it? or is this a case of taking political correctness too far? i m wolf blitzer, you re in the situation room. right now many of the biggest senate races in the country are closer than ever. these contests in places like pennsylvania, kentucky, alaska, and washington state could decide if the democrats lose control of the senate only 12 days from now. you can bet president obama is feeling the pressure. he s campaigning out west right now, delivering familiar campaign lines with a scratchy voice and just maybe a little desperation. listen. have you ever noticed when you want your car going forward what do you do? you put it in d. when you want to go backwards you put it in r. don t