1 in 3 beneficiaries voted in Nunavut Inuit elections Monday

James Eetoolook, who was re-elected vice-president of Nunavuts land claims organization Monday, says he wishes more Inuit would exercise the right to have their say at the ballot box.

Turnout was good in the past, Eetoolook says. Then it started going down.

About one in three eligible beneficiaries voted in Mondays elections for Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. and the three regional Inuit organizations.

The numbers were even lower in the Qikiqtani region, where a new president and several community directors were up for election.

That election showed that every vote counts: a recount found that Iqaluit's new community director, Simon Nattaq, beat the runner up, Madeleine Redfern, by just one vote.

The Qikiqtani Inuit Association is still working on a larger-scale recount for the race for president after Mikidjuk Akavak beat P J Akeeagok by only three votes.

The CBC spoke with some people in Iqaluit to see how they felt about the turnout.

It's not a surprise, one said. I don't think that's good enough.

Feels like... not a lot of people care enough, another said.

One even offered a solution for getting more Inuit involved in their birthright organizations

They should ask people what they want: gather people in one place and talk about what they've done.

Eetoolook hopes that one day things will turn around.

We need to work on that and keep the beneficiaries informed.