Prince Albert Daily Herald
Three Woodland Cree First Nations in northern Saskatchewan now led by women
Newly elected PBCN Chief Karen Bird. Photo courtesy of Karen Bird
“History has been made with three ladies governing the Woodland Cree,” said Karen Bird, newly elected chief of the Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation (PBCN) after election results were confirmed on Wednesday.
“I’m happy, overjoyed and overwhelmed.”
Bird is with her home community of Southend celebrating the win. As the second woman elected to the role of chief in PBCN history Bird said she’s excited to work with Montreal Lake Cree Nation Chief Joyce Naytowhow-McLeod and Lac La Ronge Indian Band Chief Tammy Cook-Searson. She said those three Woodland Cree nations all being led by women at the same time is significant.
Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation voters head to polls to elect new chief and council
Most voters of the Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation go to the polls to elect a new chief and council on Tuesday.
The communities of Pelican Narrows, Deschambault Lake, Sandy Bay, Amisk Lake/Denare Beach and Prince Albert Urban will cast ballots for chief and council positions.
A total of six candidates are running for chief and 58 candidates are running for 14 council positions.
Nevertheless, due to a COVID-19 outbreak, voters in Sturgeon Landing will not be participating in the election.
This means the results for chief and the council position for Sturgeon Landing may not be known for some days yet until it is safe for voters to cast ballots.
Pelican Narrows is under lockdown conditions after another surge in COVID-19 cases. The lockdown was first announced Feb. 19 by Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation councillor Weldon McCallum via social media, going back into effect as of 10 p.m. Feb. 21. The community has seen an uptick in COVID-19 cases in recent weeks, going from active cases in the low 10s to as high as 53 cases as of Feb. 22 according to numbers released by the local Angelique Canada Health Centre. Pelican Narrows has also been considered an outbreak zone by the Northern Inter-Tribal Health Authority (NITHA) since November. article continues below