Cherokee Nation, Federal Government Fight Over Rights Of Freed Slave Descendants: The Cherokee Nation's election commission voted Wednesday to allow descendants of slaves once owned by tribal members to cast ballots for principal chief, but they'll only count in the event of a court order.
Federal officials objected to a ruling last month by the tribe's highest court that found only people of direct Cherokee ancestry could be members of the tribe and vote in the upcoming election, essentially denying ballots to some 2,800 freedmen descendants.
While the election commission's vote doesn't directly overturn the ruling by the Cherokee Nation Supreme Court, it does allow for freedmen to cast provisional ballots in an effort to make the election results stand, regardless of how the courts ultimately rule.
