The position on the Navajo County Board of Supervisors being vacated by Jonathon Nez is expected to be filled by direct appointment on Monday, May 11.

Nez was elected as vice president of the Navajo Nation on April 21. He will be sworn into that position on May 12. As a result, the regular board meeting set for May 12 was rescheduled to 9 a.m. on May 11. Nez is expected to resign at that meeting, and ask the board to immediately appoint his replacement.

“The meeting was moved to Monday the 11th to facilitate him resigning prior to being sworn in as the Navajo Nation vice president on Tuesday,” County Manager Jimmy Jayne said.

Jayne noted that the process to fill the vacancy will be similar to the one used by former supervisor David Tenney upon his resignation. Tenney submitted the name of a recommended replacement, and the board accepted his recommendation and made an appointment at the same meeting in which they accepted Tenney’s resignation.

As of press time, Nez was not prepared to give the name of the person he intends to submit to the board to potentially fill his position. Jayne noted that he had been provided with a name, but had been asked by Nez not to reveal it yet.

Nez serves as the representative for District I, which covers much of the northernmost part of the county, including Shonto, Kayenta, Chilchinbeto, Forest Lake, Black Mesa, Piñon, Low Mountain, Blue Gap/Tachee, Whippoorwill Springs, Whitecone, Greasewood Springs, Indian Wells and Sun Valley. He also concurrently served as a Navajo Nation council delegate during his time as a county supervisor.

Nez is the third supervisor to resign within the last eight months in order to take advantage of other opportunities.

Former supervisor Sylvia Allen vacated her seat representing District III last October in order to run for the state senate, where she is currently serving. Jason Whiting of Snowflake was selected by the board from a large group of applicants to fill her position following an application and interview process.

David Tenney, who represented District IV for many years, resigned in February to accept an appointment by Governor Doug Ducey as the director of the Arizona Residential Utility Consumer Office. He asked the board to appoint Steve Williams to his position and the board accepted his recommendation.

Jayne explained that state law allows the board to determine how a vacancy will be filled.

“By law, how the board does it is up to them,” he said.

Any candidate must meet a few basic requirements, however, including being over the age of 18, living within the district they represent and being of the same political party as the person leaving the board.

Nez’s resignation and recommendation for a replacement are expected to be the last item on the board’s regular agenda at the May 11 meeting.