Native Americans Speak Out on Voter Suppression in Western States
Native American rights groups say a host of new Republican-backed bills that restrict or limit common voter registration and absentee ballot practices threaten to disenfranchise thousands of tribal citizens.
Many of the laws that have passed in recent years, driven by Republicans who have used former President Trump’s false claims about his 2020 loss as cover for a campaign against broader voter access, will take a disproportionate toll on Native American voters, those groups say, because those voters are disproportionately older, rural and impoverished.
“Structural barriers are impacting Native people’s abilities to vote,” said Allison Neswood, a staff attorney at the Native American Rights Fund. “We felt like Native issues were being both misunderstood and overlooked at the state level, even by voting rights advocates because our populations can be small.”
