Coal mining politics could sway Navajos this Election Day when voters pick next president

Coverage of tribal natural resources is supported in part by Catena FoundationHistorically, if somebody ever wanted to become president of the Navajo Nation, they likely had to be a coal-loving politician. The tribe counts close to half a million enrolled citizens worldwide, and this year's Tuesday general election is unusual; it's the first in recent memory with no candidate who openly supports the coal industry.

This fossil fuel has been the tribe's economic bedrock for generations. But it's also part of everyday life for Navajos heating thousands of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah homes still lacking electricity.

Sitting Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren was an Arizona delegate to the 2024 Democratic National Convention. But when it comes to coal, he closely aligns with President Donald Trump, who is reversing his Democratic predecessors' efforts to phase out use of the fossil fuel.

It's being touted as an American coal comeback story — a Trump agenda that has seeped into Indian Country and particularly Navajo politics throughout the sprawling 27,000-square-mile reservation in the Southwest.

Navajo Nation Office of the President / Courtesy

Nygren promised to keep the Navajo Mine — the last remaining coal mine on the tribal reservation — open. It sits in the Four Corners region of New Mexico. He also pledged to back the sole coal-fired power plant it continues to fuel; it's owned by the private utility Arizona Public Service.

That facility could remain up and running until 2038.

"Because those are hundreds and hundreds of jobs," said Nygren during his annual state address in January. "Those are millions and millions of dollars of revenue that the Navajo Nation receives. That's coal that some of you haul and get for free from some of our chapters."

But voters rejected him and his self-coined slogan, "Nygren digs coal," since the lame-duck president and another 13 candidates failed to advance beyond the July primary onto the Tuesday general race.

Now, neither of Nygren's potential replacements are publicly behind coal — platforms they've outlined in recent weeks during an October debate at Arizona State University in Phoenix.

Gabriel Pietrorazio / KJZZ

"I'm opposed to coal mining," said candidate Justin Jones, an attorney and ex-governmental affairs liaison for the New Mexico coal mine once owned by Australian mining giant BHP Billiton. "I'm opposed to any form of mining that's where a shovel will go, blast it and get resources out."

His opponent, Navajo Nation Council Speaker Crystalyne Curley, echoes a similar stance: "Coal is dying. It's not coming back. So you do need an administration to say that this is the new plan to move forward."

Nygren did the opposite — taking a selfie with President Trump last year at the White House, when the U.S. commander in chief signed an executive order aimed at saving the "beautiful, clean coal industry."

Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren / Facebook

That controversial photo-op and the optics of it really hurt Nygren's re-election chances as an incumbent this time around, according to Andrew Curley, an assistant professor at the University of Arizona.

"Based on my conversations with voters, people were upset," said Curley. "It reflected a politics I think a lot of people on the reservation reject — and is unattuned to the real struggles, real challenges for the coal economy."

The Diné geographer is also author of "Carbon Sovereignty: Coal, Development, and Energy Transition in the Navajo Nation." He's not related to Speaker Curley, but has campaigned on her behalf.

Curley himself was also a candidate for Navajo president, but didn't get past this year's primary. He's been keeping tabs on the contest since leaving the campaign trail and has noticed a change compared to the previous cycle in 2022.

In his eyes, it's significant that candidates no longer feel like they need to embrace the coal industry. "And I think that's good. I think it's good that both sides are kind of moving in this direction — to think about the land in terms of sustainability, not just resources and extraction," said Curley.

Still, the tribal government and its fragile economy are both deeply entrenched in this extractive business. The Navajo Nation owns coal deposits in Wyoming, New Mexico and Montana through NTEC — or the Navajo Transitional Energy Company — which claims to be the nation's third-largest coal producer.

Gabriel Pietrorazio / KJZZ

"NTEC is not in sync with the professed statements of our two presidential candidates," added Curley. "For me, kind of a rule of thumb: the bigger the promise, the more it'll be broken."

At age 36, Nygren became the youngest Navajo Nation president — largely because of enthusiastic turnout by voters like 44-year-old Dailan Long, who expected him to usher in a bold vision for energy. Four years later, Long is glad that Nygren is no longer on this November's ballot.

"He's within our generation," said Long. "Our hope was that he would establish a legacy that speaks to our generation and it seems that unfortunately he kind of just blended in with the status quo."

A lifelong resident of Burnham, New Mexico, Long's backyard butts up against the last remaining Navajo-owned coal mine. He worries how his home, family, neighbors and burial grounds could all be uprooted.

Gabriel Pietrorazio / KJZZ

They fear being displaced — because the Trump administration in August approved a federal permit expanding the operation by almost 12,000 acres. Now, NTEC could mine more than half a billion tons there over the next century — until the year 2136.

But after listening to what Jones and Speaker Curley have to say about coal, Long just hopes it's not campaign rhetoric yet again: "I really do hope they take it to heart and really consider, we need an energy policy that works for us."

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