Native American voting rights groups, including Four Directions and Native Vote ND, are fighting back against the GOP’s blatantly racist and anti-democratic (as well as anti-Democratic!) voter suppression scheme to disenfranchise Native American voters. North Dakota doesn’t have a voter registration requirement, so all that’s required to vote is proof of residency. However, as diaried here, Native Americans who live on reservations often have only a PO box, not a street address, and since the recent SCOTUS decision, can now be excluded from the electoral process.
Even worse, a tribal ID used to be sufficient proof of residency, including in the primary. The recent Supreme Court decision that allows North Dakota to require a residence address doesn’t leave much time for lawful residents to remedy the situation. The change has other effects, as well:
Jamie Azure, the tribal chairman of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians, says his tribe has been preparing for this shift ever since the law was first passed years ago — but with the final decision coming just weeks before Election Day, "the timing is horrible," he tells NPR… The ID requirement change doesn't just affect the state and federal elections — it's also affecting Turtle Mountain's tribal elections, because the tribe follows state and federal voting requirements.
Azure's tribe is offering free tribal ID days, when residents can get updated IDs with residential addresses at no charge.
"We're trying to tear down the barriers on our side, at the cost of the tribe," he says.
As usual, it falls on the disenfranchised — in this case, a Native American tribe whose people have been relegated to reservations — to correct the wrongs that have been done to them at their expense.
However, there is a way for people who currently have only a PO box to get a street address before the election:
The screenshot was from Native Vote ND’s Facebook page. This info is being shared on Twitter as well:
In addition, for those who are unable to obtain a residence address before election day, Four Directions is working to provide assistance at the polls:
The group is working with tribal leaders in North Dakota to have a tribal government official available at every polling place on reservations to issue a tribal voting letter that includes the eligible voter’s name, date of birth and residential address.
Jim Silrum, deputy secretary of state, said during a meeting with tribal leaders this week that a letter from tribal officials with that information would be considered a valid tribal ID.
Silrum, who was asked to speak during a meeting of the Tribal Taxation Committee, which included leaders from all five of North Dakota’s tribal nations, said his office has been working to inform tribal leaders about how they can vote.
Please help Native Americans resist voter disenfranchisement by sharing this information, not only with North Dakotans, but widely using social media. We must fight the disenfranchisement of voters!
Updating to add link to Four Directions’ Crowdpac page for those who want to support their efforts to assist reservation residents to vote.