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Gay ex-Mormon campaigns to lead the Navajo Nation in ‘Moroni for President’

“Moroni for President” is about a gay man, raised as a Latter-day Saint, who ran for president of the Navajo Nation. And it’s a lot more about the Navajo part of the story than either the gay or faith aspects.

“That’s what I liked about the film in the end — highlighting that gay, Mormon piece was also just highlighting the different ways that one can be Navajo,” said Moroni Benally, a Salt Lake City resident who’s the subject of the film.

What began as a graduate-school project by filmmakers Saila Huusko and Jasper Rischen was expanded to a full-fledged documentary that debuted on the film festival circuit earlier this year and was screened at the Utah Pride Festival in June.