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Tribal council upholds chief’s veto of alcohol vote
By Justin Goble
The chief’s veto of an alcohol referendum was upheld by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians during a Sept. 27 special meeting.
Tribal Council members were unable to garner the two-thirds majority needed to overturn Principal Chief Michell Hicks’ veto of the referendum. The measure would have allowed Cherokee voters to decide if alcohol could be served on the premises of Harrah’s Cherokee Hotel and Casino.
Tribal Council members Aug. 7 approved a referendum for on-premises alcohol sales at Harrah’s. The proposal was put forth by the Tribal Casino Gaming Enterprise Board, which oversees operations at Harrah’s.
TCGE officials claim alcohol sales will attract more people to the casino, which will in turn help the local economy. That’s why the measure was taken to the tribal council, said TCGE representative Norma Moss.
In a letter sent to Tribal Council Chairman Mike Parker late in August, Hicks said he would veto the measure as a way of upholding the tribe’s traditional stance against alcohol.
“It is my belief that an affirmative decision to open the door for alcohol would shame our forefathers for their efforts on this issue over the history of the tribe,” Hicks said.
The tribal council dodged a vote on alcohol in 2006. When the issue was brought up then, community opposition led TCGE representatives to withdraw it before the council could act.
Before then, the tribal council’s last vote on alcohol sales came in 1999. Patrick Lambert, then-head of the gaming commission, convinced council members to allow a referendum on off-premise sales on the reservation. Like his current counterparts in the commission, Lambert said Cherokee is losing money to other tourist areas because of the tribe’s rules against alcohol.
A groundswell of opposition to the sales led council members to rescind their vote to allow the referendum.
The last time the whole tribe voted on alcohol sales was in 1980, when the measure was soundly defeated.
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