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Kimberly Teehee (born October 13, 1968) is a Native American ( Cherokee Nation) attorney, politician, and activist on Native American issues. She is a Delegate-designate to the U.S. House of Representatives from the Cherokee Nation. She served as senior policy advisor for Native American affairs in the administration of President
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...
from 2009 to 2012. In February of 2020, she was named by ''Time'' as one of 16 activists fighting for a "More Equal America."
Early life and education
A member of the Cherokee Nation, she was born inChicago, Illinois
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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, and raised in Claremore, Oklahoma
Claremore is a city and the county seat of Rogers County in Green Country or northeastern Oklahoma, United States. The population was 19,580 at the 2020 census, a 5.4 percent increase over the figure of 18,581 recorded in 2010.Cherokee language speakers.
Teehee is a graduate of
In the Obama administration she served on the White House Domestic Policy Council. Beginning July 2009, she assumed the new position of Senior Policy Advisor for Native American Affairs and advised the president about issues pertaining to Indian country.
In 2012, she accepted "a position with the Mapetsi Policy Group, a small legal and lobbying firm founded by tribal advocate, Debbie Ho, with the aim of preserving tribal sovereignty."
During her tenure at the White House, she played a major role in securing re-authorization of the 
In 2014, Teehee joined Cherokee Nation Businesses, where she served as vice president of special projects for the tribe's holding company.
"Teehee nominated as Cherokee Nation’s delegate to Congress"
from the ''
Page from the Cherokee Nation's siteCherokee Delegate campaign site
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Teehee, Kimberly 1966 births 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians Delegates to the United States House of Representatives from the Cherokee Nation Living people Northeastern State University alumni Obama administration personnel Oklahoma Democrats People from Claremore, Oklahoma Politicians from Chicago University of Iowa College of Law alumni 20th-century Native American women 20th-century Native Americans 21st-century Native American women 21st-century Native Americans 20th-century American women lawyers 21st-century American women lawyers Native American lawyers Lawyers from Chicago Oklahoma lawyers Rogers State University alumni
Rogers State University
Rogers State University (RSU) is a public university in Claremore, Oklahoma. It also has branch campuses in Bartlesville and Pryor Creek.
History
The institution that is now RSU has gone through several stages, from its foundation as a stat ...
, where she received an associate's degree
An associate degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of Tertiary education, post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of qualification above a high school diploma, GED, or matriculation, and below a bachelo ...
, and of Northeastern State University
Northeastern State University (NSU) is a public university with its main campus in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. The university also has two other campuses in Muskogee and Broken Arrow as well as online. Northeastern is the oldest institution of high ...
, where she was graduated '' cum laude'' with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science in 1991. She earned her Juris Doctor from the University of Iowa College of Law
The University of Iowa College of Law is the law school of the University of Iowa, located in Iowa City, Iowa. It was founded in 1865. Iowa is ranked the 28th-best law school in the United States by the '' U.S. News & World Report'' "Best Law Sch ...
in 1995. She was awarded a Bureau of National Affairs
Bloomberg Industry Group (formerly known as Bloomberg BNA, The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc., and BNA) is an affiliate of Bloomberg L.P. and a source of legal, tax, regulatory, and business information for professionals. It is headquartered in ...
Award.
Career
Teehee served as the first deputy director of Native American Outreach for the Democratic National Committee and director of Native American outreach for PresidentBill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
's 1997 inauguration. Starting in 1998, she then served as Senior Advisor to Democratic Congressman Dale Kildee
Dale Edward Kildee (September 16, 1929 – October 13, 2021) was an American politician who served as U.S. Representative of Michigan from 1977 to 2013. He was a member of the Democratic Party.
His district included Flint, Saginaw and Bay ...
of Michigan, who was a co-chair of the Native American Caucus in the House of Representatives.
In the Obama administration she served on the White House Domestic Policy Council. Beginning July 2009, she assumed the new position of Senior Policy Advisor for Native American Affairs and advised the president about issues pertaining to Indian country.
In 2012, she accepted "a position with the Mapetsi Policy Group, a small legal and lobbying firm founded by tribal advocate, Debbie Ho, with the aim of preserving tribal sovereignty."
During her tenure at the White House, she played a major role in securing re-authorization of the Violence Against Women Act
The Violence Against Women Act of 1994 (VAWA) is a United States federal law (Title IV of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, ) signed by President Bill Clinton on September 13, 1994. The Act provided $1.6 billion toward investi ...
(VAWA). In 2015, after leaving the White House, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians honored her for her work on VAWA, especially as it related to prosecuting non-natives who abuse native women on tribal lands.
In 2014, Teehee joined Cherokee Nation Businesses, where she served as vice president of special projects for the tribe's holding company.
Delegate-nominee to Congress
In August 2019, Principal ChiefChuck Hoskin Jr.
Chuck Hoskin Jr. (born 1974/1975) is a Cherokee-American politician and attorney currently serving as the Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation since 2019.
Hoskin has previously served as a Tribal Councilor for the Cherokee Nation between 2007 a ...
appointed Teehee as the Cherokee Nation's first-ever delegate to the United States House of Representatives. Her appointment was approved by the Cherokee Council on August 29. The Nation's right to send a delegate to Congress was provided for in the Treaty of Hopewell of 1785 and the Treaty of New Echota of 1835; however, the right was not exercised until 2019. The U.S. House of Representatives will have to vote to seat Teehee as a delegate similar to those representing the U.S. territories. If accepted, her role will be non-voting, similar to those of representatives from Washington D.C.
)
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, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...
, American Samoa
American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the Internationa ...
, Guam
Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
, Northern Mariana Islands
The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI; ch, Sankattan Siha Na Islas Mariånas; cal, Commonwealth Téél Falúw kka Efáng llól Marianas), is an unincorporated territory and commonw ...
, and the United States Virgin Islands
The United States Virgin Islands,. Also called the ''American Virgin Islands'' and the ''U.S. Virgin Islands''. officially the Virgin Islands of the United States, are a group of Caribbean islands and an unincorporated and organized territory ...
.
, the Cherokee Nation were still attempting to have Teehee be seated. In February 2021, it was reported that Teehee was among those who advised President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris
Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who is the 49th vice president of the United States. She is the first female vice president and the highest-ranking female official in U.S. history, as well ...
on their campaign promises concerning Native Americans prior to the 2020 United States presidential election and that her seating as a delegate in Congress had been delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
, though she expected to be seated sometime in 2021. Teehee remained unseated as of September 2022, when the Cherokee Nation government reiterated their insistence that Congress seat her. A formal hearing by the United States House Committee on Rules to discuss the legality and procedure for seating Teehee was scheduled for November 16, 2022. Hoskin spoke at the event and afterward, several members of the House supported a decision to seat Teehee as soon as possible, including by the end of the year.
While Teehee represents the Cherokee Nation, in 2021, Oklahoma's United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians
The United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma ( or , abbreviated United Keetoowah Band or UKB) is a federally recognized tribe of Cherokee Native Americans headquartered in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. According to the UKB website, its member ...
selected Victoria Holland as a delegate, arguing that they represent the same people as the Cherokee of the Treaty of New Echota.
References
External links
"Teehee nominated as Cherokee Nation’s delegate to Congress"
from the ''
Cherokee Phoenix
The ''Cherokee Phoenix'' ( chr, ᏣᎳᎩ ᏧᎴᎯᏌᏅᎯ, translit=Tsalagi Tsulehisanvhi) is the first newspaper published by Native Americans in the United States and the first published in a Native American language. The first issue was pu ...
''Page from the Cherokee Nation's site
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Teehee, Kimberly 1966 births 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians Delegates to the United States House of Representatives from the Cherokee Nation Living people Northeastern State University alumni Obama administration personnel Oklahoma Democrats People from Claremore, Oklahoma Politicians from Chicago University of Iowa College of Law alumni 20th-century Native American women 20th-century Native Americans 21st-century Native American women 21st-century Native Americans 20th-century American women lawyers 21st-century American women lawyers Native American lawyers Lawyers from Chicago Oklahoma lawyers Rogers State University alumni