Hollis E. Roberts (May 9, 1943 – October 19, 2011) was a Native American politician whose career was highlighted by his 19-year period as Chief of the Choctaw Nation.
Roberts subsequently began his political career as a city council person in Hugo, Oklahoma where he served for 14 years.
Following his time as a member of the Oklahoma House, Roberts served from 1975 to 1978 as Choctaw Chief David Gardner's assistant.
As a young, energetic, and charismatic leader, Roberts embodied much of the Red Power Movement and became a guiding voice for change at a time when Indian sovereignty was at a countrywide high.
Roberts ran against political rival Charles E. Brown, former leader of the right-wing Choctaw Youth Movement.
A major component of this new constitution was the removal of blood quantum for tribal membership, which effectively increased the number of members of the Choctaw tribe.
Under his reign, the Choctaw Nation improved health standards, saw an increase in population, and set forth intensive economic growth campaigns.
One of his appeals was that the U.S. District Court lacked jurisdiction where the assaults took place because they happened in Tribal complex property which was trust land and thus not Indian Country nor formally a part of the reservation.
Indeed, he served for 19 years as chief of one of the largest Native American tribes in the United States, overseeing the modernization of the reservation, and conducting massive public-service improvements.