Two-way race in Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami presidential election
Two candidates will be on the ballot in September for the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami presidential election.
Incumbent Natan Obed will face former CBC North managing editor Kevin Kablutsiak.
ITK, the national organization representing Canadian Inuit, made the announcement Friday morning, a day after the nomination deadline.
The winner will be determined Sept. 18 during the organization’s annual general meeting in Cambridge Bay.
Obed, 49, has been at the helm of ITK since 2015. He is the longest-serving president in the organization’s history.
He won the 2015 and 2018 presidential elections, then was acclaimed in 2021 when no one ran against him. Obed announced he will run in the upcoming election as a “veteran,” despite previously saying this would be his final term.
Kablutsiak, 47, is a first-time candidate for political office.
Along with previously holding several positions at ITK, Kablutsiak’s resume includes work for various organizations such as Nunavut Tunngavik Inc., First Air and Canadian North. He also served as executive director for the Arctic Inspiration Prize and managing editor at CBC North.
ITK presidents are not directly elected by Inuit Nunangat beneficiaries.
Instead, the head of the organization is selected in a vote among four recognized Inuit organizations: Nunavut Tunngavik Inc.; Makivvik Corp., representing Inuit in Nunavik; Inuvialuit Regional Corp., of the western Arctic; and the Nunatsiavut government, the Inuit land-claims organization for Newfoundland and Labrador.
Two delegates from each region and the vice-president of ITK cast a ballot to decide the winner.
Related stories from around the North:
Canada: Natan Obed changes plan, says he wants another term as ITK president, The Canadian Press
Finland: Finnish Court annuls 2023 Sámi elections, The Independent Barents Observer
Norway: Silje Karine Muotka is new President of the Sámi Parliament in Norway, The Independent Barents Observer
