Wahsayah Whitebird

Wahsayah Whitebird (born 1992) is a member of the Communist Party of the United States who served from 2019 to 2021 on the City Council of Ashland, Wisconsin, United States. Whitebird is a Bad River Band Chippewa and while in office was one of only two Communist Party members serving as an elected official in the United States.

Early life Whitebird is a member of the Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians, a tribe whose reservation is located about 10 miles east of Ashland on the coast of Lake Superior. Whitebird worked at a deli in Ashland prior to his election and was a member of the United Food and Commercial Workers.

Electoral history Whitebird won his first election on April 2, 2019, beating incumbent David J. Mettille 52–42. Whitebird ran on issues including making housing more affordable, reducing drug abuse, and building homeless shelters. His election made him the only known Communist Party member elected to public office in the United States at the time.

Policy positions Whitebird's policy positions are generally aligned with those of democratic socialists, though his overall political views and philosophy are more aligned with traditional Communism.