Haaland endorses Elizabeth Warren
Congresswoman cites candidate’s aid to working families
SANTA FE — One of two Native American women in Congress endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., on Tuesday, citing the Massachusetts senator’s priorities for helping working families.
U.S. Rep. Debra Haaland, D-N.M., announced her endorsement in social media posts that describe Warren as a partner on policies that affect Native Americans.
On Instagram, a photograph of Haaland and Warren side by side was accompanied by praise for Warren’s approach to student loan debt and a crisis in missing and slain indigenous women.
“Elizabeth has been a great friend to me and a great partner for Indian Country,” Haaland wrote, hours before Warren’s scheduled appearance in Detroit at the Democratic presidential primary debate.
Warren has been criticized for claiming Native American identity early in her career and apologized recently to the Cherokee Nation for releasing DNA test results as evidence she had Native American ancestry, albeit at least six generations back.
Haaland is a tribal member of Laguna Pueblo and represents a district centered in Albuquerque.
Haaland and Democratic Rep. Sharice Davids of Kansas won election last year and became the first Native American women to serve in Congress.
Haaland highlighted her collaboration with Warren on bills aimed at improving military housing and providing universal access to child care.