Mobilizing the Native Vote to the ballot box this election season

With Election Day approaching, Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University’s Arizona Native Vote Election Protect Project (NVEPP) is helping Native American voters protect their right to vote.

“Today, Native Americans in Arizona face obstacles accessing the polls because of inherent barriers unique to those living on Tribal lands, burdensome election laws, racism and neglect on the part of election administrators to ensure that there is equal access to elections,” said Patty Ferguson Bohnee, Indian Legal Program and Director and Associate Dean for Inclusive Excellence.

NVEPP was started in 2008 after Arizona Proposition 200 was passed, requiring persons to provide proof of citizenship to register to vote. One incident in particular was with Agnes Laughter of Navajo Nation who couldn’t vote because she didn’t have access to any of the necessary documents she needed to receive a ballot.

Laughter’s case presented a unique challenge many other Native Americans face when voting in Arizona. 

It was then that the ASU Indian Legal Clinic partnered with the Inter Tribal Council of Arizona, the Arizona Indian Gaming Association  and the Native American Bar Association of Arizona to create the Arizona Native Vote Election Protection Program. 

“Considering the burdensome and unique needs of Native Americans in Arizona, the Native Vote Election Protection Project seeks to identify potential issues prior to election day, train and maintain a network of volunteers to respond to incidents on election day, and collect data on barriers to voting for Native Americans in Arizona,” explained Bohnee.

The NVEPP works in and with tribal communities to reduce the number of Tribal members turned away from polling sites because of improper identification, language barriers, misinformation regarding voting laws, misapplication of the law, voter intimidation tactics, among other issues that Native American voters face when attempting to vote in state and federal elections.

Having volunteers on site and readily available can make a difference in someone’s voting experience and making sure their vote will be counted. 

The project is actively recruiting volunteers to sign up and help ensure voters can exercise their right to vote without any obstacles.

Written by Crystal Jimenez