Joe Shirley Jr.
| Joe Shirley Jr. | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| 6th President of the Navajo Nation | |
|
In office January 14, 2003 – January 11, 2011 |
|
| Vice President |
Ben Shelly (2007-2011) Frank Dayish Jr. (2003-2007) |
| Preceded by | Kelsey A. Begaye |
| Succeeded by | Ben Shelly |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
December 4, 1947 Chinle, Arizona |
| Nationality |
 Navajo Nation and USA
|
| Spouse(s) | Vikki Shirley |
| Residence | Chinle, Arizona |
| Occupation | Apache County Supervisor |
| Religion | Catholic |
Joe Shirley Jr. (born December 4, 1947) is an American Navajo politician who was elected President of the Navajo Nation in November 2002 and served until January 2011. He is from Chinle, Arizona, and is , born for Tábaahá.
Shirley was born in Chinle, AZ on the Navajo Nation. He is married to Vikki Shirley and the couple have three sons and three daughters. Joe Shirley has B.S. in Business from Abilene Christian University ('73) and a Masters in Social Work from Arizona State University ('78). In 2005, Northern Arizona University bestowed upon Shirley an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters for his continued service to the community.
Shirley served on the Navajo Nation Council from 1986 to 1999. While on the Council, he was the Chairman of the Labor and Manpower Committee Advisory Committee from 1987 to 1991, Chairman of the Tax Commission from 1991 to 1995, Chairman of the Ethics and Rules Committee from 1995 to 1998 and a member of the Intergovernmental Relations Committee.
After completing his second term as Navajo President, he was re-elected as the Apache County Supervisor for a third term.
Since December 2001, after the death of their daughter to a drunk driver, the Shirley family has been heavily involved with MADD.
In 2002, Joe Shirley and Frank Dayish (Shirley's political running mate) entered the race for the Presidency of the Navajo Nation and defeated incumbent President Kelsey Begaye with 31,406 votes to 23,964 cast for Begaye. Joe was inaugurated as the President of the Navajo Nation on January 14, 2003 in Window Rock, AZ.
In 2006, Shirley selected Thoreau, New Mexico, Council delegate Ben Shelly as his vice presidential running mate during his second bid for Navajo Executive Office. On election day, Shirley became the first Navajo to be re-elected to the office of Navajo President since the office was reformed from a Chairmanship to Presidency. Former New Mexico State Representative Lynda Lovejoy was his opponent during the 2006 Navajo Nation Election. By a small majority of the popular vote, Joe Shirley and Ben Shelly were elected. They were inaugurated in January 2007.
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