DENINU KU'E/FORT RESOLUTION - After serving as acting chief for more than three years and winning an election that was later overturned, Louis Balsillie has finally won his own mandate to lead Deninu Ku'e First Nation in Fort Resolution.

The 50-year-old was elected chief on Feb. 11.

"I'm shocked," he said on election night when asked about his win, which saw him elected to a four-year term.

For one thing, he said he and George Larocque, another candidate for chief, are cousins and he was worried they would split the support of relatives. "I was afraid that we were going to steal each other's votes."

Balsillie's closest competitor, Tom Unka, is vowing to challenge the election.

"There's an appeal coming," Unka said.

Balsillie collected 98 votes, compared to 86 for Unka. Larocque received 14 votes and 11 ballots were marked for Therese Villeneuve, who lost to Balsillie by a single vote in a race for chief in late 2009 and later helped launch court action overturning that election.

Balsillie had been acting chief since former chief Bill Norn was suspended in 2007. Balsillie briefly called himself chief after the 2009 election before it was overturned and he returned to the title of acting chief.

The new chief said the election results shouldn't be challenged in court.

"You never know," he said. "People would probably want to take it back to court, but I don't know what grounds."

Unka said his appeal to the electoral officer will be filed on Feb. 14.

"I have a lot of grounds to appeal," he said.

First of all, he claimed electoral officer Raymond King is in conflict of interest because he is Balsillie's brother-in-law.

King rejected that suggestion, saying he was appointed by band council, not by Balsillie.

The new chief said he abstained from the hiring process, for which a band council resolution was passed.

Unka also said the polling clerk was the same person who ran the overturned 2009 election.

In addition, he claimed there was a nasty tone in the election campaign by Deninu Ku'e First Nation staff and other Balsillie supporters, adding he was "dragged through the mud" on Facebook.

"They were absolutely vicious and they just tore me apart," he said.

However, Balsillie also objected to the tone of the campaign. "I've been through a lot in the last couple of weeks - a lot of stress, all the crap that's going on, and people talking about me and putting me down," he said, noting some were even accusing him of stealing.

Unka said, if his appeal is successful, he will call for an Indian Act election, meaning any new vote would be overseen by the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada.

The second-place candidate said, if no other solution is found, he may challenge the election in court.

Five councillors were also elected on Feb. 11 out of a field of 10 candidates.

Stanley Beck topped the field with 121 votes, while Raymond Simon placed second with 104 and Robert Sayine was third with 94. They will serve four-year terms.

Carol Collins collected 87 votes and Dave Pierrot earned 88 votes to be elected for two years.

"Obviously, the people in the community don't think there's anything wrong with what we're doing," said Balsillie, noting most of the old council was returned.

King was pleased with the election process.

"Everything went pretty smooth," he said. "Everybody came in, did their 'X' and they were gone."

King said 246 people cast ballots out of more than 600 registered voters, more than half of whom live outside Fort Resolution.

Voters living elsewhere had to travel to the community to cast their ballots and about 40 of them came from Fort Smith, Hay River and Yellowknife.

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