White Mountain Apache Tribe leaders stress unity and future priorities

Chairman Orlando Carroll and Vice Chairman Marty Paxson took office on May 6, placing a new team at the top of White Mountain Apache tribal government after an election that drew thousands of voters and ended with an 80-vote margin. The message from the new leadership has centered on unity and the work ahead, a tone that matters in a government that handles the tribe’s day-to-day welfare decisions.

The White Mountain Apache Tribe’s constitution, last amended in 1993, says the Tribal Council exists to represent the tribe and act on matters concerning the welfare of the tribe. That gives Carroll and Paxson a direct role in the issues residents notice first, from staffing and budgets to the practical decisions that shape services in Whiteriver and across the Fort Apache Reservation.

The tribe’s website says the White Mountain Apache people have lived in eastern Arizona for thousands of years, and that history is matched by a broad stretch of land that reaches from about 2,600 feet above sea level to 11,400 feet at Mount Baldy. Those conditions affect land use, recreation and stewardship across a reservation where county and tribal interests often overlap.

The leadership change also comes after years of active tribal governance. In 2024, former Chairman Kasey Velasquez was elected chairman of the Executive Board of Directors of the Arizona Indian Gaming Association, underscoring the tribe’s reach in regional tribal gaming and intergovernmental circles. Public council actions in 2024 and 2025 also show routine work on personnel and budget resolutions, the unglamorous decisions that determine whether services are staffed and funded.

Youth involvement remains visible as well. On March 18, 2024, the White Mountain Apache Tribal Youth Council held a wellness event in Whiteriver to promote physical wellness and recruit new members, a reminder that the next generation is already being pulled into tribal civic life.

Carroll and Paxson are both listed on the tribe’s website as up for re-election in 2030, which means the current leadership will be judged over a full term of decisions, not just the symbolism of the transition. The real measure of unity will come in how the council handles staffing, budgeting, land use and the public safety issues that cross tribal and county lines.