When you're presiding over communities with demographics measuring in the tens or hundreds, not thousands, it can get personal.

Colville Lake: Aug. 8, 2001 -- Dora Duncan defeats 16-year incumbent Richard Kochan for chief in a 35-28 vote. Nov. 19, 2001 -- The band council votes to remove Duncan as chief, and daughter Jennifer from council. Dec. 14, 2001 -- The Duncans file a claim in federal court to have the band council's decision overturned. May 17, 2002 -- Federal Court Justice Edmond Blanchard halts byelection in the community, saying it could cause "irreparable harm" to the community. The case is still ongoing. Coun. Sharon Tutcho remains acting chief. Wrigley: Aug. 12, 2002 -- Chief Percy Hardisty ousted by council while out of town. An election is called for Aug. 29. Nov. 16, 2002 -- After some delays, an election is held, and Tim Lennie is elected chief -- a post he has held several times. Hardisty said he did not run because he didn't want to jeopardize his legal challenge to his removal. Salt River First Nation: Aug. 30, 2002 -- Victor Marie elected chief over two other challengers. Oct. 9, 2002 -- Council votes 5-0 to have Marie removed after he hires former MLA Jeannie Marie Jewell -- his sister -- as interim band manager. Nov. 3, 2002 -- Marie returned as chief by Salt River membership in a show of hands 86-66.

When a candidate shakes hands with a potential voter it's not merely a blip in time likely never to be repeated again, such as may be the case when the mayor of Toronto hits the campaign trail. It's part of a series of assurances and reassurances between close neighbours.

"That's where it's harder," says Marie, who was elected chief Aug. 30, ousted six weeks later by his own band council, and then reinstated in a membership meeting a month later.

He is one of three chiefs in the NWT over the last year who found themselves in a highly contentious situation after their band councils decided to give them the boot.

Wrigley chief Percy Hardisty was voted out by council last August. Colville Lake Chief Dora Duncan and his daughter, band councillor Jennifer Duncan, were forced out after three tumultuous months, on Nov. 19, 2001.

Their removal launched a yet-unresolved court challenge by the pair.

Marie says the current council and himself are working hard to prevent such scenarios from ever happening in the community again.

"During my time I'm hoping and praying I can put all that in place so it will be easier for the next chief and council coming," said Marie. "All of these things got to go for ratification anyway to the membership."

At the last Dene Leadership meeting in Rae Nov. 28, chiefs listened to a proposal from the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs and Development, offering funding to First Nations to help implement election codes for each community.

Unlike First Nations on reserves, whose election criteria falls under the Indian Act, most First Nations in the NWT elect their chiefs and councillors through custom elections -- a process under development in the NWT since about the 1940s. First Nations began using secret ballots during the late 1960s and early '70s. Previously, leaders were chosen either by a show of hands from the membership or through a council of elders.

Today, each community decides on their own how a leader will be elected and the rules of governance, except in some communities where election codes are either incomplete or non-existent.

Dene National Chief Bill Erasmus acknowledges that a problem exists in some communities, but ultimately it's up to the people to decide how they want to be governed.

"If we can be consistent throughout the communities so when a chief gets in, the chief knows there's some security there," says Erasmus, "that a handful of people can't remove the chief and that there's greater respect for that office.

"There needs to be some clear guidelines that people follow so everyone knows the rules."

Searching for solutions

DIAND has to tried to stay out of the fray up until now, but the department's director of Indian and Inuit services, George Cleary, says it has become a problem they can no longer ignore.

"In custom elections, DIAND really doesn't have a direct role," says Cleary, who -- as the former chief of Deline -- has ample experience in First Nation governance.

"It's up to the chief and council and membership to develop their own election codes, and make sure the rules are abided by. But just recently we saw the need to get more proactive."

DIAND met with band managers this year to develop a sample election code First Nations can use as template for drafting their own election policies. Provisions for governance, membership lists, electoral timelines, and rules for removing an elected chief and council are all part of the package.

DIAND will offer bands 25 per cent of the funding upfront to begin work on an election code, another 25 per cent once a first draft is complete and reviewed by the department, and the final portion once the code is complete. The total for each band will be between $5,000 to $20,000.

Marie says he is glad DIAND is working with First Nations to help them put election codes in place, but wants to make sure the federal government doesn't use the policy as an excuse to interfere in local governance.

Colville Lake band councillor Alvin Orlias agrees.

"I think it should be left up to the communities," says Orlias.

"The communities know what they want."