Native American Voting Rights Act

Text: Remove voting barriers from Indian Lands. Pass NAVRA. Along with a photo of Native American people sitting in a congressional hall.

In voting rights lawsuits, Native Americans win an astounding 90+% of the cases they bring. Federal legislation is sorely needed to establish baseline, consistent standards for voting in Indian Country. We should not have to bring lawsuits and incur legal fees to protect our freedom to vote and defend ourselves from state and county laws and practices that disenfranchise Native American voters.

One hundred years after the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924 and the Nationality Act of 1940, Native American voters continue to face unique challenges when exercising their right to vote. Introduced in 2021, the Frank Harrison, Elizabeth Peratrovich, and Miguel Trujillo Native American Voting Rights Act of 2021 (NAVRA) is bipartisan legislation. It was introduced in the Senate on August 10, 2021, and in the House on August 13, 2021.

The Native American Voting Rights Act (NAVRA) protects our right to vote by:

Ensuring voting locations in rural communities have the same hours and access to resources.
Allowing Tribes to designate a tribal building as a voting address for Native voters who do not have a residential address and do not receive home mail delivery.
Allowing for a family or household member, or a service provider to return ballots for people living in tribal communities.
Requiring tribal approval for decisions, like moving or closing a polling place.
Requiring local jurisdictions to accept Tribal IDs as a form of identification for registration and voting.
Mandating federal agencies to provide registration opportunities to American Indians and Alaska Natives.
Providing voting accessibility for speakers of traditional Native languages.

Download an explainer flyer about NAVRA.

In order to protect the right to vote on Indian lands, any legislation passed must address the distinct issues confronting Native American voters, including:

Geographic isolation, often with lack of reliable transportation and poor access to distant polling and registration locations;
Non-traditional mailing addresses, overcrowded housing, homelessness, and housing instability;
Lack of residential mail delivery and limited access to post offices;
Lack of access to affordable and reliable broadband service;
Native language translation needs, including non-written, during voting process;
Strong socioeconomic challenges, such as poverty and unemployment;
Historic and ongoing mistrust of state and local governments.

A Voice at the Ballot Box: A Broken System Leaves the American Indian without a Strong Voice in Elections (9/14/21) Lycia Maddocks of Thunderbird Strategic, LLC, interview with NARF Staff Attorney Jacqueline De León for the American Indian Advocacy “Strengthening Tribal Sovereignty” podcast series

Senate Subcommittee Hearing: Restoring the Voting Rights Act: Protecting the Native American and Alaska Native Vote

**See NARF Staff Attorney Jacqueline De León testimony at 1:40:30.** U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Subcommittee on the Constitution. October 20, 2021. More information at https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/committee-activity/hearings/restoring-the-voting-rights-act-protecting-the-native-american-and-alaska-native-vote

Related Legislative Hearings:

Over the years, NARF staff have provided expert testimony to help legislators understand the unique experiences of Native American voters. Much of our testimony is based on the findings included in our report, Obstacles at Every Turn: Barriers to Political Participation Faced by Native American Voters.

October 20, 2021
Restoring the Voting Rights Act: Protecting the Native American and Alaska Native Vote. Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Subcommittee on the Constitution.

October 27, 2021
Business Meeting to consider H.R.1688 & Oversight Hearing on “Voting Matters in Native Communities. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs.

May 24, 2021
Voting In America: The Potential For Voter ID Laws, Proof-Of-Citizenship Laws, And Lack Of Multi-Lingual Support To Interfere With Free And Fair Access To The Ballot. U.S. Committee on House Administration Subcommittee on Elections.

April 22, 2021
Oversight of the Voting Rights Act: The Evolving Landscape of Voting Discrimination. U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties.

February 11, 2020
Native American Voting Rights: Exploring Barriers And Solutions. U.S. Committee on House Administration Subcommittee on Elections.

September 10, 2019
Evidence of Current and Ongoing Voting Discrimination. U.S. House Judiciary Subcommittee on Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties.

July 17, 2018
Roundtable on “Voting Rights, Access, and Barriers in Indian Country.” U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs.

Support for NAVRA

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“We really need the Native American Voting Rights Act. We all have to get involved in the political process in Washington, D.C. This is our only hope.… We need to get Congress to act on this now,” NARF Executive Director John Echohawk (Pawnee) said.