GT Thompson, [Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate] Vietnam Veteran and Kit Fox Society registering to vote
We have a
chance to help Rick Weiland win the Senate seat in South Dakota thanks to the vote the nine tribes (
Oceti Sakowin or Seven Council Fires) there can provide this election.
How do we get the Dakota, Lakota and Nakota (Sioux) Nations out to vote? Fortunately, some big motivators are already in place this year to invigorate these voters. Tribal elections are being held on the same day as the federal and state ones, and there are a record number of American Indian candidates running this year in various races. A much-desired county name change made it on the ballot as a referendum thanks to State Rep. Kevin Killer and his team.
Shannon County is entirely within the Pine Ridge reservation and was named for a white man who was key in grabbing the land away from the tribes in the late 1800s. If it passes, the referendum will change the name to Oglala Lakota County, a move that the tribe is entirely behind. Pine Ridge has the largest population of all the South Dakota reservations. The votes there and on the other reservations could be critical in a Senate race in which the winning margin might be only hundreds of votes.
As you know, these motivators are not enough. Traditional get-out-the-vote methods are needed, and the grassroots Great Plains Get Out the Native Vote organization is in place to tour the nine reservations to register voters. The tour begins on Oct. 13 and runs through to Oct. 20, the last day to register. Another bonus is that they have same-day voting until Oct. 20! This is critical for folks who live on reservations where their homes are often several miles apart. Many don't have transportation.
GOTV takes money and there's not much of that on the reservations, especially at Pine Ridge. Which is why Daily Kos is asking those who can afford it to contribute to this effort.
On Thursday we raised more than $12,000 of our $50,000 goal for the South Dakota NDN Election Efforts PAC to fund the efforts for Great Plains project. Today we wanna continue that effort to buy fuel for the bus, feed the drivers, buy cash cards to support the volunteers and purchase much-needed radio time to spread the word about the GOTV effort. Everyone on the rez listens to their local radio station.
From Markos:
Here's my goal: I want to raise $50,000 for this Native American GOTV effort. Their ideal budget is $200,000, but let's start with a more realistic goal. Prove me wrong and too conservative and let's blow by that goal. I'm in for $100 to Weiland, $250 to the GOTV effort. I only need you to chip in $3 for each.
The side that sits on the sidelines will lose. Don't let it be us. So how about it? Three bucks to have a progressive senator from South Dakota? Another three bucks for those fighting hard to bring out the American Indian vote?
Here's some more reading about how the reservation vote can provide the margin in this important Senate race, and at the same time possibly have an impact on state legislative and other races, too:
• American Indian voters and Indian organizers gave N.D. Senate edge to Democrat Heidi Heitkamp
• American Indians won the right to vote in 1924, but some officials still haven't gotten the message
-both by Meteor Blades
Contribute so American Indian voices can be heard in South Dakota!
Voting by mail is convenient, easy, and defeats the best of the GOP's voter suppression efforts. Sign up here to check eligibility and vote by mail, then get your friends, family, and coworkers to sign up as well.
Don't sit this one out. Act today!