Vince James is a two-term incumbent and chair of the Health, Education & Human Services Committee. His interview with Cal Nez covered his chapter priorities and project funding, economic development, the business-law and government-reform debates, the missing $24 million, and health care and 638 oversight. Below are the questions Cal asked, short summaries of James's answers in our own words, and follow-ups a voter might still want answered.
Watch or read the full interview, and see the scorecard, on Vince James’s profile. This page is a nonpartisan summary; the Diné Civic Center does not endorse any candidate.
James is finishing his second term (seeking a third) and chairs HEHSC, having earlier served on Law & Order. He described a long list of chapter projects in varying stages — ARPA, RRR, CHSN, UUFB, chapter-allocation, housing-discretionary, CIP, and state funds — and tied them back to elders, veterans, the disabled, children, and community beautification.
James rated himself high, explaining that economic-development items sit with the Resource Development Committee while he chairs HEHSC, so the real venue to weigh in is Naabik'íáti' (the council's committee of the whole), where delegates must research each piece of legislation as it is introduced.
James framed it as small but real improvements — a C-store might employ only ten people, some commuting half an hour, but it is still progress for a community. He stressed that each site differs (a leaking tank, EPA cleanup, inflation since a ten-year-old estimate) and that the five-year economic plan is set in law and politically driven.
James wants the Nation's business law (he pointed to the long-running Title 17 rewrite) re-ratified and amended to make it easier for Navajo families to start and keep businesses, and only partly agrees with the NBOA — questioning its design and short lease-renewal windows. On reform, he said the Government Development Office has done extensive public hearings and the people should decide what government they want.
James said he voted in favor under the Nez administration and that things changed under the new administration. He stressed that the council allocates funds and entrusts the executive branch to spend them correctly, and that separation of powers limits what delegates can do about an executive-branch employee. He suggested the legislative branch should join the 1-6-4 contract-review process so council learns where the money goes.
James supports 638 and called it helpful, but flagged that 638 entities report only once a year and said that is a problem — he would push for quarterly or at least semi-annual reporting and tie 638 agreements to four-year council terms so each new committee starts with a clean orientation. On the fraud case, he said it had already been prosecuted federally, and acknowledged qualified oversight is hard to recruit at Navajo salaries, with housing compounding it.
Topics a voter in this district might still want to hear about:
Not a judgment of this candidate — just what a specific, substantive answer includes, so you can weigh any candidate’s response: