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BY ALEXANDRA PAUL WINNIPEG — Northern chiefs and councillors elected their first female grand chief Wednesday in a historic vote on the Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation in Nelson House. Broadcast journalist Sheila North Wilson was announced the winner in a four-way race that took two separate ballots to settle the leadership of Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak (MKO) Unofficial final numbers put North Wilson in the undisputed lead with 74 votes, against runner-up William Elvis Thomas with 58 votes. Incumbent grand chief David Harper from Garden Hill was eliminated on the first ballot, with 23 votes, the lowest number The candidate with the second-lowest number of votes at 24, Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation youth leader Tyler Duncan, then dropped out of the race. Before entering politics, North Wilson, from Bunibonibee First Nation in Oxford House, was a broadcaster journalist for a decade with the CBC and CTV, with a stint in between as a communications director with the provincial indigenous chiefs group, the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs. The runner-up was Nisichawayasihk band councillor Thomas, best known for negotiating the $1.8-billion Wuskwatim hydro deal for Nelson House. Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak grand chiefs are elected to three-year terms by chiefs and councillors, not by universal vote, and take direction from local leaders in assemblies. MKO represents northern First Nations. MKO is a public advocate 30 for, and gatekeeper, to Manitoba's north. That includes a role in services shared by First Nations for policing, child welfare, health care, housing and the environment, as well as economic development. Harper, a former chief from Garden Hill in Island Lake, was first elected in 2009 and re-elected in 2012 to the top northern post. In a Facebook post shortly before the vote, the former grand chief quoted the Bible and wished everyone a good day. » Winnipeg Free Press Sheila North Wilson
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Brandon Sun
Brandon, Manitoba, CA
Thu, Sep 03, 2015
Page 3
Full Page
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Jill M.
CA 23 Jul 2026
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