In the upcoming Arizona State Election of 2024, Jonathan Nez, a former Navajo Nation president, a former Navy SEAL, and a contender on “Shark Tank”, will be running for Arizona’s Congress. Nez announced on Monday, October 16th that he would be running for the 2nd congressional district. He hopes to take former chairholder, Eli Crane’s seat. If he were to win, the now Republican-leaning district would head toward the Democratic side.

Nez plans to become the first Native American to have worked in the state House. This would be a huge win for not only the second congressional district but for all of the unrepresented Native American citizens in Arizona. An article from the New York Times states that in the video in which he announced his candidacy on X, formerly known as Twitter, Nez says that he was from a low-income area that often didn’t have access to electricity or running water. He also said that he is very familiar with the struggles indigenous people go through and wants to shine a light on the many problems they face.

The district itself holds over 14 tribes, 12 reservations, and about 820,500 (as of 2022) Arizonians in total. Nez’s contribution to the 2nd district would mean the reservations in the area would be consistently spoken for, missing indigenous women would be widely acknowledged, common necessities would be more accessible to the reservations, and education systems would be improved. Jonathan Nez ends his video by saying that if elected, he will, “Put the needs of rural Arizonans before DC politics.”