Beth Drost wins Grand Portage Tribal Chair seat

The unofficial results of today’s special election for the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa are in. Elizabeth “Beth” Drost has garnered the majority of the votes for Tribal Council Chair, defeating Janice “Marie” Spry. Drost will be the first woman Tribal Chair. 
 

Drost had 80 votes at the Old Log School polling place and 93 absentee votes, for a total of 173. 
 

Spry received 62 votes at the polls and 59 absentee votes, for a total of 121.
 

The Tribal Council Chair vacancy occurred when the Grand Portage community lost its long-time leader, Chair Norman Deschampe, who died on February 9, 2019.
 

Since then, Vice-Chair Marie Spry has been serving as interim tribal chair and when she filed to run for the office of chair, she had to resign her seat on the council. 
 

The election was historic, with two woman candidates running for the Tribal Chair position. 
 

The results are considered unofficial until a canvass by the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe.