Gabriella Cázares-Kelly (born 1982) is a Tohono Oʼodham and American educator, community organizer, and politician serving as the Pima County, Arizona Recorder since 2021. She is the first Native American elected to a countywide role in Pima County.
Gabriella Cázares-Kelly | |
|---|---|
| Pima County Recorder | |
| Assumed office January 2021 | |
| Preceded by | F. Ann Rodriguez |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1982 (age 41–42) |
| Citizenship | Tohono O'odham Nation United States |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | Pima Community College University of Arizona Northern Arizona University |
Early life and education
editCázares-Kelly was born in the Spring of 1982 and is a citizen of the Tohono O'odham Nation and comes from the Pisinemo District in Pisinemo, Arizona.[1][2] She moved to Tucson, Arizona as a teenager.[1][2] She completed general education at Pima Community College.[3] Cázares-Kelly earned a bachelor's degree in secondary English education from the University of Arizona.[2] She received a master's degree in educational leadership for community college and higher education from Northern Arizona University.[2]
Career
editCázares-Kelly began her career as a high school teacher on the Tohono O'odham Nation.[2] She taught in high school and community college for over ten years.[1] For over eight years, she was a member of the Arizona Academic Advising Articulation Task Force (AAAATF).[3] She worked as an academic adviser at Tohono O'odham Community College before transitioning into voter registration efforts in 2016.[4]
A community organizer, after the U.S. presidential election, Cázares-Kelly co-founded Indivisible Tohono in 2016 to address the lack of voter education and representation in her community.[2] The group began organizing voter registration campaigns, training voter registrars, and hosting candidate forums to boost civic engagement.[2] In January 2017, Cázares-Kelly spoke at the Tucson Women’s March, addressing the lack of inclusion of Indigenous women in the event.[5] Her involvement continued into 2018, where she and other Indigenous women were disappointed with a similar event in Phoenix.[5]
Under her leadership, Indivisible Tohono held the first-ever candidate forum on the Tohono O'odham Nation in August 2018.[2] During this period, she actively worked to counter the impact of restrictive voting laws, lack of polling locations, and bureaucratic obstacles that disproportionately affected Native American voters in Arizona.[2] In January 2019, Cázares-Kelly and Indivisible Tohono took a leading role in the Tucson Women’s March.[5] They organized an intertribal group to ensure Indigenous women were prominently represented at the front of the march.[5] This effort was part of a broader mission to create space for Indigenous voices in public events and social movements.[5] In March 2019, Cázares-Kelly was one of three women honored for her community service by the Arizona César E. Chávez Holiday Coalition at the sixth annual Dolores Huerta Celebración de la Mujer.[6]
In November 2019, Cázares-Kelly announced her candidacy for Pima County Recorder.[1] She won the election in November 2020, becoming the first Native American elected to a countywide role in Pima County.[1] She received 289,932 votes versus Republican Benny White who garnered 203,631.[1] Cázares-Kelly began her term in January 2021, succeeding F. Ann Rodriguez.[1][7] Her campaign focused on voter registration and ensuring that historically underrepresented communities in Pima County had a voice in elections.[1] She focused on addressing barriers faced by Indigenous and rural voters, including lack of physical addresses and mistrust of government systems.[4] Her initiatives have aimed to increase voter turnout by improving education and accessibility for marginalized communities.[4]
Cázares-Kelly advocates for voting rights, emphasizing the need for non-partisan election processes. She has worked to eliminate obstacles for Native voters, including physical and legislative barriers. Although elected as a Democrat, she highlights the importance of trust in the electoral system across all political lines.[4] As of December 2020, Cázares-Kelly is the vice-chair of the Native American Democratic Caucus and the president of the Progressive Democrats of Southern Arizona.[1] She endorsed the Kamala Harris 2024 presidential campaign.[8]
Personal life
editAs of December 2020, Cázares-Kelly lives in Tucson with her husband and twin children.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Silversmith, Shondiin (December 3, 2020). "Gabriella Cázares-Kelly is the first Native American elected to a Pima Countywide seat". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Murphy, Tim (October 2018). "4,000 square miles. One post office. Why it's so hard to vote in Arizona's Indian country". Mother Jones. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
- ^ a b "Gabriela Cazares-Kelly". College of Education - University of Arizona. June 2, 2020. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
- ^ a b c d Kutz, Jessica (September 3, 2024). "How a Native elections official is breaking down voting barriers in Arizona". The 19th. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e O'Gara, Nick (January 18, 2019). "Players of Traditional O'odham Women's Sport to Lead Women's March". news.azpm.org. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
- ^ Duarte, Carmen (March 22, 2019). "3 women to be honored Sunday for their service to better community". Arizona Daily Star (in Mexican Spanish). Retrieved September 21, 2024.
- ^ "Biography". Pima County Recorder's Office. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
- ^ Denetclaw, Pauly (August 23, 2024). "Past, present Indigenous elected leaders endorse Kamala Harris • Source New Mexico". Source New Mexico. Retrieved September 21, 2024.