Cherokee Nation

Placing a hand against the smooth, black granite for balance, 92-year-old John Cockrum stood on his toes and reached with his folded umbrella to point at a name high on the wall of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

The Cherokee Nation is seeking restitution for a drug abuse epidemic that has disproportionately affected members of its tribe.

The nation filed a lawsuit against major pharmaceutical companies and pharmacy retailers in tribal court on Thursday, alleging that these companies have unjustly profited off of selling medically unnecessary amounts of prescription opioids.

The Cherokee Nation now recognizes same-sex marriages under an opinion issued Friday by the tribe's attorney general.

As a sovereign nation, the Cherokees and other tribes weren’t bound by a 2015 U.S. Supreme Court decision that made same sex marriage legal in all 50 states.

The Cherokee Nation has sued the federal government, and wants to know details about how it has managed its property throughout history.

Washington has historically overseen certain assets of recognized tribes, like property or money earned off leasing or selling that land.

The Cherokee Nation is set to receive a tractor-trailer load of bison to add to the tribe's herd on its 1,000-acre ranch in the unincorporated Kenwood community in northeastern Oklahoma.

The tribe is to receive about 50 bison from a national park in South Dakota on Thursday after acquiring the animals from the InterTribal Buffalo Council. The Cherokee Nation had gone 40 years without raising bison until last year and now has 68 head of bison on its ranch.

Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Bill John Baker delivered the annual State of the Nation address to the tribe Saturday as thousands turned out in Tahlequah for the three-day Cherokee National Holiday.

Baker touted his administration's success during the past four years, and said he promised to make healthcare a priority when he took office in 2011.

Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Bill John Baker has been sworn in for his second, four-year term.

More than 1,000 people attended Friday's inauguration at Sequoyah High School in the tribal capital of Tahlequah to watch Baker and Deputy Chief S. Joe Crittenden sworn in.

Tribal councilors Rex Jordan, David Walkingstick, Shawn Crittenden, Dick Lay, Buel Anglen, Bryan Warner, Keith Austin and Wanda Hatfield also took office.

A recount supervised by the Cherokee Nation Supreme Court has finalized the candidates in a runoff election.

The Cherokee Nation Election Commission on Friday announced the results of the Thursday recount, with Wanda Hatfield and Betsy Swimmer advancing to a July 25 runoff for an at-large tribal councilor position. The final results show Hatfield with 1,057 votes and Swimmer with 763.

Shane Jett, who came in third, finished 50 votes behind Swimmer. The general election results were certified Monday and Jett requested the recount on Wednesday.

The Cherokee Nation Election Commission certified results Monday showing Principal Chief Bill John Baker won a second term.

Baker earned roughly 53 percent of the vote. He needed 50 percent to avoid a runoff with any of the other four candidates, including his predecessor, former Principal Chief Chad Smith, state Rep. Will Fourkiller, and Charlie Soap, the widow of former Principal Chief Wilma Mankiller.

The nonprofit Carter Center says it won't be observing this year's upcoming Cherokee elections as in past years.

The Atlanta-based center says the Cherokee Nation Election Commission decided against inviting the center to observe the June 27 elections.

The Carter Center observed elections for the Cherokee Nation in 1999 and 2011 — a controversial election that continued into the fall before a new chief of the Cherokees was known.

Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin and Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Bill John Baker have signed a compact authorizing bulk purchases of Oklahoma hunting and fishing licenses for members of the tribe.

Under the new compact, the Cherokee Nation is expected to purchase more than 150,000 licenses from the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation for Oklahoma-based tribal citizens over the age of 16. The agreement is expected to generate up to $4 million for the state to be dedicated to wildlife conservation efforts.