Thomas Atcitty (November 1, 1933 – October 11, 2020) was an American politician and educator who served in the

New Mexico House of Representatives ) is the lower house of the New Mexico State Legislature. There are 70 members of the House. Each member represents roughly 25,980 residents of New Mexico. The most recent elections were held on November 3, 2020. Composition Leadership Cu ...

as a member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, 2nd

Vice President of the Navajo Nation The office of Vice-President of the Navajo Nation was created in 1991 following restructuring of the Navajo Nation government. The president and vice president are elected every four years. The Navajo Nation Vice-President shall serve no more tha ...

, and briefly served as the 3rd

President of the Navajo Nation The President of the Navajo Nation is the head of state of the Navajo Nation. The office was created in 1991 following restructuring of the national government. The President and Vice President are elected every four years. The Navajo Nation Pres ...

. He was a member of the

Navajo Nation The Navajo Nation ( nv, Naabeehó Bináhásdzo), also known as Navajoland, is a Native American reservation in the United States. It occupies portions of northeastern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico, and southeastern Utah; at roughly , the ...

Early life

Thomas Atcitty was born on November 1, 1933 in

Shiprock Shiprock ( nv, , "rock with wings" or "winged rock") is a monadnock rising nearly above the high-desert plain of the Navajo Nation in San Juan County, New Mexico, San Juan County, New Mexico, United States. Its peak elevation is above sea le ...

. Atcitty graduated from Navajo Mission High School in 1954, and attended

Taylor University Taylor University is a private, interdenominational, evangelical Christian university in Upland, Indiana. Founded in 1846, it is one of the oldest evangelical Christian universities in the country. The university is named after Bishop William ...

, the

University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, University of Colorado Denver, and the University of Co ...

, and

Gannon University Gannon University is a private Catholic university in Erie, Pennsylvania. Gannon University has approximately 4,500 students and 46,000 alumni. Its intercollegiate athletics include 18 athletic programs for men and women competing at the NCAA Di ...

. He served in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

Career

Education

Atcitty served as the vice-president of the Navajo Community College during the 1970s after starting to work at the college in 1969. On October 16, 1972, President Ned Hatathli died when he shot himself while cleaning his rifle causing Atcitty to become acting president. Atcitty was selected to replace Hatathli on December 4, and later became the official third president of the college on February 8, 1973. He served as president of the college until his resignation made effective March 1, 1977.

Politics

Atcitty was elected to the

from the 4th district as a member of the

and served until his resignation in January 1995. During his tenure in the New Mexico House of Representatives he served as the chairman of the Consumer and Public Affairs committee. Atcitty also served as the co-chairman of the Democratic caucus in the House of Representatives alongside

Felix Nunez Felix may refer to: * Felix (name), people and fictional characters with the name Places * Arabia Felix is the ancient Latin name of Yemen * Felix, Spain, a municipality of the province Almería, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, ...

. Atcitty served as

Albert Hale Albert A. Hale (March 13, 1950 – February 2, 2021) was an American attorney and politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he served in the Arizona Senate from 2004 to 2011 and in the Arizona House of Representatives from 2011 to 2017. A ...

's vice-presidential running mate during the 1994 Navajo Nation presidential election and they won defeating incumbent President

Peterson Zah Peterson Zah (born December 2, 1937) is an American politician who was the first Navajo President and the last Chairman of the Navajo Nation. Since 1995, he has been working at Arizona State University as the Special Adviser to ASU President on Am ...

. He resigned from the House of Representatives to become the

. During his vice-presidency he sought the pardon of Peter MacDonald by President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

. On February 18, 1998, President Hale resigned to avoid criminal prosecution causing Atcitty to become

, but he only served until he was removed by the

Navajo Nation Council The Navajo Nation Council ( nv, Béésh bąąh dah siʼání) is the legislative branch of the Navajo Nation government. The council meets four times per year, with additional special sessions, at the Navajo Nation Council Chamber, which is in Wi ...

on July 23, 1998, for violating ethic codes. During his tenure as president he was given the Medgar Evers Award by the

NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E.&nb ...

Death

Atcitty died from natural causes on October 11, 2020, at age 86.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Atcitty, Thomas 1933 births 2020 deaths 20th-century Native Americans Gannon University alumni Democratic Party members of the New Mexico House of Representatives Military personnel from New Mexico People from Shiprock, New Mexico Presidents of the Navajo Nation Taylor University alumni University of Colorado alumni Vice Presidents of the Navajo Nation 21st-century Native Americans