Colorado River Indian Tribes install new council, mark historic women-led shift
Six women joined the new CRIT administration as the tribe installed a nine-member council that now oversees water, housing and other decisions on nearly 300,000 acres.
At the BlueWater Resort and Casino Showroom, the Colorado River Indian Tribes installed a new Tribal Council to steer services, water policy, land decisions and economic planning for Parker-area residents across the reservation. Six members of the new council are women.
The council is the tribe’s governing body, led by a chairman and vice-chairman, with each member elected to a four-year term. Elections are held in early December of even-numbered years. CRIT has about 4,277 active members, and its reservation stretches along both the Arizona and California sides of the Colorado River, covering almost 300,000 acres. The homeland was created in 1865 for the Mohave and Chemehuevi peoples and now includes the Mohave, Chemehuevi, Hopi and Navajo tribes.
Flores thanked supporters and introduced guests from other tribes and officials tied to Gov. Katie Hobbs and the Arizona Department of Water Resources. Outgoing councilmembers Johnson JD Fisher, Bobby Page and Jaymee Moore also spoke, offering encouragement as authority shifted to the newly installed council.
In April 2024, Arizona and federal officials signed documents implementing an agreement allowing CRIT to market portions of its Colorado River allocation off-reservation. The tribe is also pursuing federal legislation to lease, exchange and store underground part of its consumptively used decreed Colorado River water allocation off the reservation.
The Bureau of Indian Affairs is implementing the Colorado River Indian Tribes Water Resiliency Act to support water conservation and leasing agreements for drought mitigation in the Lower Colorado River Basin. In December 2024, the Bureau of Reclamation announced new conservation initiatives with CRIT and other tribes, with more than $43.7 million in total investment. In May 2025, 18 short-term conservation agreements were set to conserve 321,000 acre-feet through 2026.
CRIT has also publicly opposed post-2026 Colorado River proposals that would have reduced its senior tribal water rights. The installation closed with bird songs and dance.
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