Chairman Forrest Tahdooahnippah
As the weight of the ceremonial blanket settled in on Forrest Tahdooahnippah’s shoulder at his recent swearing-in ceremony, so too did the weight of responsibility.
“This is a huge opportunity and a very humbling experience to have the trust and faith of 17,000 Comanches put into my hands,” he told attendees at the May 24 ceremony where he took the oath of office as newly elected chairman of the Comanche Nation of Oklahoma. “I want to make you all proud and have a government we can be proud of and a people we can be proud of.”
Tahdooahnippah, who began at Mitchell Hamline in 2021 as an adjunct professor and has been an assistant professor since 2022, is affiliated with the school’s Native American Law and Sovereignty Institute. Before coming to Mitchell Hamline, he led the team at Dorsey & Whitney that served as tribal attorney for the Comanche Nation, and it was that experience that inspired him to run for chairman.
“I felt like there were a lot of institutional issues that I couldn’t help with as an adviser but would be able to help as a leader,” he said.
So after weeks of campaigning culminating in an election in mid-May in which he garnered 61% of the vote, Tahdooahnippah is now in a position to take action.
Among his priorities are strengthening the faith and trust the Comanche Nation has in their government, enacting a tribal corporations code to aid in economic development, and establishing a tribal law foundation for charitable purposes. “These are the things that I’m excited to do,” he said. “I’m really happy when I am able to help people.”
Native American law and tribal sovereignty have been Tahdooahnippah’s life passion, throughout his time at Stanford University, where he graduated with honors, to the University of Minnesota Law School, to his professional career.
Professor Angelique EagleWoman praised Tahdooahnippah’s work and his latest accomplishment. “Chairman Forrest Tahdooahnippah of the Comanche Nation steps into his position with a depth of legal knowledge as a lawyer, law professor, and staunch advocate for Tribal Nations which was shared for the benefit of our law students in his Native law classes. We are incredibly proud of him,” she said.
“Professor Tahdooahnippah has been a strong advocate for tribal sovereignty and will now carry that forward as chairman of the Comanche Nation,” said Interim President and Dean Jim Hilbert. Chairman Tahdooahnippah’s term will last for three years, and his relationship to Mitchell Hamline while he is serving in this role is still being determined.
Others connected with the Native American Law and Sovereignty Institute have participated in tribal politics and governance, including Angela Levasseur ’22, who was elected in 2022 as the first female chief of her First Nation community in Canada. Tahdooahnippah hopes his experience can be a model for students as well. “I hope that me doing it, being involved in tribal politics, is something that continues to inspire students that the path is possible.”