Minority Representation, Resistance, and Public Policy: The Navajos and the Counties

This article examines Navajo Indian representation on the governingboards of six county governments in Arizona, New Mexico, andUtah. External pressures, especially decisions by the federalgovernment, have encouraged increased Navajo representationand changes in county policies that benefit people on the reservation.Beyond this, the findings for individual counties are consistentwith previous research in suggesting that the size of the Navajopopulation as a percentage of the county population is an importantfactor affecting Navajo success in winning seats and the allocationof benefits to reservation residents. Yet, opposition to Navajorepresentation, the ability of Navajos to secure office, andthe policy significance of their representation are far morecomplex than usually suggested by the relevant literature basedlargely on black and Hispanic experiences.