How many American Indian voters does it
take to elect an official? The answer should matter to every
candidate in this election year, since American Indian votes could
swing elections in districts throughout Montana, South Dakota, New
Mexico, Nevada and Arizona.
NativeVote 2004, spearheaded
by the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), an
organization of tribal governments, is rallying as many Natives as
possible to register and vote in November 2004. The group hopes
that with encouragement, tribal members will become active in the
political process, attend forums, and even run for office. Regional
tribal governments, urban Indian centers and related organizations
will all participate in the NativeVote effort.
And
NativeVote is making sure that candidates know what the major
issues are in Indian Country. The goal is to elect officials who
support American Indian concerns. Says Lillian Sparks, NCAI staff
attorney, “We want to make candidates recognize the power of Native
voting.”
For more information, see www.nativevote.org, or
call 202-466-7767.
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Indian poll power.
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