The Seneca Nation of Indians is a federally recognized Seneca tribe based in western New York.Pritzker, 469 They are one of three federally recognized Seneca entities in the United States, the others being the Tonawanda Band of Seneca (also in western New York) and the Seneca-Cayuga Nation of Oklahoma. Some Seneca also live with other Iroquois peoples on the Six Nations of the Grand River in Ontario.
The Seneca Nation has three reservations, two of which are occupied: Cattaraugus Reservation, Allegany Indian Reservation, and the mostly unpopulated Oil Springs Reservation. It has two alternating capitals on the two occupied reservations: Irving at Cattaraugus Reservation, and Jimerson Town near Salamanca on the Allegany Reservation."New York Casinos." 500 Nations. (retrieved 31 May 2010) The tribe also claims sovereignty over a portion of the Canawaugus settlement as of 2022, which is not federally recognized. An additional territory de facto governed by the nation, the Cornplanter Tract in Pennsylvania, officially expired in 1957 and was submerged by the construction of the Allegheny Reservoir in 1965.
Government In 1848, Seneca Indians residing on the Allegany and Cattaraugus Territories in New York established this government through a constitutional convention. The Seneca Nation of Indians Constitution established a tri-partite governing structure based on general elections of 16 Councilors, three Executives (President, Treasurer, and Clerk), and Court Justices (Surrogates and Peacemakers). Elections take place every two years, on the first Tuesday in November, usually concurrent with Election Day in the United States. An exception is in years when November 1 is a Tuesday; in those years, the Seneca Nation hold their election on November 1 while the US hold their elections on November 8. The leadership rotates between the two reservations each election, so no officer can serve consecutive terms. There are no other term limits, and elected officers can serve numerous nonconsecutive terms."Government." Seneca Nation of Indians. (retrieved 31 May 2010)
The Council established rules for citizenship within the nation. In the 21st century, the Seneca Nation of Indians in New York has a total enrolled population of nearly 8,000 citizens.
Its territories are mostly rural with several residential areas. Many Seneca citizens live off-territory, and some are located across the United States, as well as in other countries. Off-territory residents, who often work in remote urban areas that provide more jobs, comprise nearly half of the enrolled citizens. These off-territory members are eligible to vote and are often bussed in during elections.
The Seneca Nation's republican form of government stands in contrast to that of the Tonawanda Seneca Nation. The Tonawanda Seneca Nation retained its traditional government of hereditary chiefs chosen by clan mothers from the maternal lines responsible for such leadership. The Seneca Nation of New York deposed such hereditary leaders in the 1848 convention. Followers of the traditional government structure split off and organized the Tonawanda Band, who later also gained federal recognition.
The Seneca Nation government denied women the right to vote until the early 1960s; this despite the traditional pre-republic structure in which women were granted the right to choose chiefs. The nation's male voters rejected female suffrage in three consecutive referendums in the 1950s, all rejected with widespread opposition from the Allegany Reservation, before the referendum finally passed in 1964, with women granted the right to hold office in 1966."Seneca Women Given Right to Hold Office." Salamanca Press. October 8, 1966.
In July 2024, Seneca Nation citizens voted against creating a tribal police department.
Politics
Since the late 20th century, the Seneca government is reported to be primarily under one-party rule, with the Seneca Party having control of the political process. In 2011, the Seneca Party was reported by The Buffalo News as having bribed people for votes and bussed voters in from out of state during elections.Herbeck, Dan (November 15, 2011). "Resentments abound in Seneca power struggle", The Buffalo News. Retrieved November 16, 2011. The party also controls human resources management in the nation's various enterprises, allowing them to hire people for patronage jobs and fire people for political dissent.Fink, James (September 26, 2016). Gates overtakes Snyder in Seneca nation vote. Business First. Retrieved September 26, 2016. Opposing political parties have accused the party of electoral malfeasance through violating the secret ballot.
According to J.C. Seneca, a former Seneca Party politician who defected from the party in 2014, the ruling class has ensured that only the Seneca Party has had enough candidates to qualify for straight-ticket voting in which voters can select all of a party's candidates for office with a single ballot mark by intimidating candidates from other parties out of the race, and on election day, poll workers eavesdrop upon voters by timing how long it takes to cast a ballot. In years past, the nation has used lever-action voting machines, a process that will be replaced as of 2016 by scanned paper ballots, If a poll worker heard a voter depress more than one lever, or take too long to complete their ballot, they could report this back to the Seneca Party bosses, who could then punish the voter by denying them jobs or seizing their homes.Miller, Rick (October 26, 2016). J.C. Seneca seeks Seneca Nation presidency again. The Salamanca Press. Retrieved October 26, 2016. There have been numerous factions and disputes within the Seneca Party; tensions increased during the presidency of attorney Robert Odawi Porter in 2010–2012. Supporters of Porter were at odds with supporters of the John family, an old-line, politically powerful family in Seneca circles. In the years following Porter's lone term, the disputes have mostly been settled.
In November 2011, the John family led a vote to depose Porter by stripping him of most of his powers and give the title of chief executive officer to Michael "Spike" John. He is the cousin of Maurice "Moe" John, who served as Seneca president from 2006 to 2008, and ran unsuccessfully for Seneca President against Porter in 2010. Diane Kennedy, Tribal Clerk and a Porter ally, invalidated this vote under conflict of interest statutes. In an October 2012 Council Session, a close friend of Kennedy said that Porter wrote the invalidation letter for Kennedy to sign. The action for de facto impeachment was taken after John supporters said politically motivated charges were made against Susan Abrams, a John ally.
The 2012 elections were marked by a split in the Seneca Party and one of the most wide-open (and bitterly contested) Seneca elections in several years: five candidates competed for the post of president, including two endorsed by the two major factions in the Seneca Party.Herbeck, Dan (October 27, 2012). "A bitter battle to lead Seneca Nation", The Buffalo News. Retrieved October 27, 2012. Barry E. Snyder Sr., a John ally who had previously served several other terms as President (including the one immediately before Porter), was re-elected to the post in 2012.
On November 4, 2014, with 66 percent of the vote, Maurice "Moe" John of the Seneca Party was elected to serve as President of the Seneca Nation of Indians. John faced council member Darlene Miller, who ran on the One Nation Party ticket. The Seneca Party had a landslide victory in the 2014 Elections; Todd Gates was elected Treasurer, and Pauline "Snap" John was elected Clerk. Elected to the Council were Ross L. John Sr., Llona LeRoy, outgoing President Barry Snyder, John Adlai Williams Jr., all of the Cattaraugus Territory. Tina Abrams, Rickey Armstrong, William "Billy" Canella and Stephen Gordon were elected to the Council from the Allegany Territory.
The Seneca Party nominated then Treasurer/CFO, Todd Gates, as its nominee for President in September 2016, spurning Barry Snyder's efforts at a sixth term; Snyder, a supporter of the party machine, endorsed Gates, who faced challengers J.C. Seneca and Sally Snow. The Seneca Nation elections took place on November 1, 2016. Gates defeated candidates J.C. Seneca and Sally Snow for President. Outgoing President Maurice "Moe" John was elected Treasurer, Lenith Waterman was elected Clerk. Elected to Council were Linda "Soupy" Doxtator, Jeffrey Gill, Arlene Bova Michael Williams, Presley Redeye, Keith White, Al E. George and Timothy Waterman.
In the 2018 Seneca Nation elections, Rickey L. Armstrong Sr., a Nation Councilor since 2014 and a past Seneca Nation President from 2002–2004, received the Seneca Party nomination for President along with Matthew Pagels for Treasurer, and Bethany Johnson for Clerk. Armstrong defeated independent candidate Stephen L. Maybee with over 89% of the vote in the November 6th, 2018 general election. The Seneca Party won all Seneca Nation offices, Councilors elected were Tina Abrams, William Canella, Josh Jimerson, Angie Kennedy, Llona LeRoy, Robert W. Jones, Ross John Sr., and John Adlai Williams Jr. Andrew Keyes and Brandon Crouse were elected Chief Marshals; Darby LeRoy, Cheyne Jimerson, Rory Wheeler, Josh Becker, Christopher Bova, and Randy White were elected Marshals.
The 2020 Seneca Nation election featured a across the board sweep by the Seneca Party, who endorsed Matthew Pagels for President, Rickey Armstrong Sr., for Treasurer, and Marta Kettle for Clerk. They defeated the Senecas for Change 2020 ticket led by presidential candidate and businesswoman Sally Snow, newcomer treasurer candidate Karen Johnson Veeraswamy, clerk candidate and former court of appeals judge Julie Snow, and Independent treasurer candidate Stephen Maybee. Elected to the council from the Allegany Territory were longtime council members Al E. George, Arlene Bova, outgoing marshal Josh Becker, and former Seneca Nation Health System president/chief executive officer, Tim Waterman. Councilors elected from the Cattaraugus Territory were the Seneca’s environmental director, Lisa Maybee, current councilor and fire chief of the Nation’s volunteer fire department, Presley Redeye, deputy chief of staff to the treasurer, Eliot “Chub” Jimerson, current councilor and former chief marshal, Keith White.
In 2024, the aforementioned J.C. Seneca reconciled with the Seneca Party and received its nomination for President as part of its slate of candidates. The 2024 Seneca Nation election resulted in significant changes to the leadership of the Seneca Nation, with a strong showing of support for Cattaraugus Councilor J.C. Seneca, who defeated independent challenger Mike General in a decisive victory for Seneca Nation President. Seneca secured 87% of the vote, marking a resounding mandate from voters.
Outgoing Allegany Councilor Al E. George was elected Treasurer, bringing his experience to the role after serving on the Council. Additionally, former two-time Clerk Lenith Waterman returned to office, regaining the position as Clerk of the Seneca Nation.
The Seneca Nation Council saw several familiar faces returning to leadership roles. From the Allegany Territory, the Council included Rickey L. Armstrong, Sr., the outgoing president of the Seneca Nation, who was re-elected to the Council, Kevin W. Seneca, a former Nation Treasurer and Chairman of the Seneca Gaming Corporation, who returned to Council, Christian Reiller, and Josh Becker. From the Cattaraugus Territory, the newly elected Council members included Klint Nephew, Eliot Jimerson, Lisa Maybee, and Jonathan D. Williams. With Seneca’s election to President, his seat on the Cattaraugus Territory Council became vacant. To fill the remainder of his term, former Nation President and Treasurer Todd Gates was appointed to the Cattaraugus Council, bringing a wealth of experience back to the Council table.