North Carolina’s Ninth District special election is underway, and it’s already a nail-biter, drawing nationwide attention after the original election was thrown out due to blatant Republican corruption (more on that in a moment). This special election pits Democrat Dan McCready, a business professional and veteran, against Republican state Rep. Dan Bishop, plus two third-party candidates. Early voting began on Aug. 21, with the election taking place on Sept. 10.
The GOP is feeling the heat, dumping TONS of money into Bishop’s race and even sending in ol’ Trump himself on Sept.9, all to try and amass support for Bishop. Bishop, a self-described "pro-life, pro-gun, pro-wall" conservative, is one of the original authors of HB2, North Carolina’s notorious 2016 law that targeted transgender people for discrimination by prohibiting them from using public bathrooms that match their gender identity.
In a race that continues at a neck and neck pace, however, it’s a not-so-Little Blue Pocket of Native American voters, rather than a visit from Trump, that could be the deciding factor. Four Directions, an activist organization devoted to Native American voting rights, voter empowerment, voter protection, and voter engagement, has a plan to swing this election, and it’s a no brainer—empower Native Americans in North Carolina.
But first, how did we get here? As you may recall, the Ninth District seat is currently vacant after supporters of Mark Harris, the original Republican candidate, boldly committed election fraud, resulting in the state election board not certifying the results of the 2018 election. A special election was unanimously ordered; Harris cited his health and declined to run, and Bishop dominated the Republican primary, taking nearly 48% of the vote. Meanwhile, McCready, who unofficially trailed Harris by a mere 900 votes or so in that original uncertified tally, ran unopposed in the Democratic primary.
As the special election loomed, Four Directions saw an opportunity to empower the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina. Historically and right up to the present day, Native Americans have been disenfranchised at the polls, and Four Directions wants to make sure that in this election, every eligible vote is cast … and counted.
The organization, founded in 2004, has had huge successes in many states, including North Dakota, and are banking on their well-rounded strategy to empower the Lumbee, who are the amalgamation of various Siouan-, Algonquian-, and Iroquoian-speaking tribes. At 55,000 members strong, the Lumbee Tribe is the largest tribe in North Carolina, the largest tribe east of the Mississippi River, AND the ninth largest in the nation. The Lumbee Tribe is not federally recognized, however, and therefore does not receive any of the benefits granted to Native American tribes that do have full recognition by the U.S. government. In North Carolina, the Lumbee primarily reside in Robeson, Hoke, Cumberland, and Scotland counties, three of which lie within NC’s Ninth District.
In June, the Lumbee Tribal Council partnered with Four Directions to drive their members to the polls.
As Four Directions Co-Executive Director O. J. Semans tells Daily Kos, “In the 2018 North Carolina general election, 16% of absentee ballots requested statewide went unreturned. But in Robeson County, home of the Lumbee Tribe, 62% went unreturned—four times the statewide rate. When we learned of this, we knew we had to help our Lumbee brothers and sisters. Now, we've brought the Nation's most effective direct-action Native voter engagement operation to the Bishop/McCready race in NC-09. We're on the ground in this Special Election, protecting Lumbee tribal members from a repeat of the election fraud perpetrated against them in 2018.”
What does this “on the ground” approach look like? Four Directions is advocating on behalf of the Lumbee Tribe to achieve equal access to the ballot box, training and assisting Lumbee tribal members in getting out the vote, and working to protect against the voter suppression and voter fraud tactics previously used against Lumbee voters.
Since arriving in the Ninth District on Aug. 23, Four Directions has already helped nearly 200 Lumbee voters cast a ballot through their “One-Stop Centers” for voters. They’ve also hired over 30 drivers to get folks to the polls on Election Day—and they’re not done yet.
There’s simply no more essential duty of a democratic government than to provide open and fair elections that are accessible to ALL eligible voters, including Native Americans. It is the right of all Americans, including and especially Indigenous people, to have equal access to the election process.
Now that GOP corruption has been curbed and EVERYONE has a voice and a vote, the NC-09 special election will be even more exciting to watch. If we’ve learned anything from 2016, it’s that decent Americans will not tolerate voter suppression tactics any longer. Groups like Four Directions are working hard to ensure that every person eligible to vote can cast a ballot. This is one Little Blue Pocket that the nation has its eye on, and one that could very well determine the outcome of the NC-09 special election.
You can follow Four Directions’ progress in NC-09 on Twitter. If you would like to help out with Four Directions’ efforts, please click here.
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