WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. – To stop unlawful legislation seeking his removal from office, Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren filed a motion for a temporary restraining order (TRO) in the Window Rock District Court on November 24. The Court granted the motion the next day and enjoined the Navajo Nation Speaker and the Navajo Nation Council from enacting that legislation until the court hearings are concluded.
In the order granting the TRO, the Court summarized President Nygren’s argument as stating that the removal legislation “Contains unproven allegations that are predetermined to remove [President Nygren and Vice-President Montoya] from office and is eligible for action on 11/27/25 when this court closes [for the five-day holiday closure]. This a possible illegal power grab and violation of various Navajo Nation laws which the petitioner should be enjoined from enacting…”
The court made a Legal Conclusion of Law that Speaker Curley’s attempt “pose[s] the potential to obliterate the separation of powers within the Navajo Nation Government, causing government instability, concentration in one branch of government, and may cause irreparable harm without adequate remedies at law.”
President Nygren welcomed the court’s decision.
“I want to remind the Navajo people that the President of the Navajo Nation is elected by our people from across the entire Navajo Nation,” President Nygren said. “Council Delegates are chosen within limited regions and represent only a limited constituency, while the Speaker is a position not directly elected by the People. But as your President, I was elected by the overwhelming voice of the Navajo People. The Diné entrusted me with this responsibility, and I will honor that trust.
“Any attempt to unlawfully remove a President is not just a political maneuver, it is an attack on the will of the People and on the sanctity of our democratic system and our people’s votes,” President Nygren added. “I have said it before, and I will say again that I will stand firm against any effort to remove me. The people’s vote is sacred, and I will defend it.”