2004: Voter IDs Come to Indian Country

2004: Voter IDs Come to Indian Country

The Problem

After the Native vote made the razor-thin difference in the 2002 U.S. Senate race, the South Dakota legislature enacted a Voter ID law requiring all voters to show a state or Tribal ID to participate in the 2004 general election.

For most Native voters who live on a reservation, getting a state ID required as much as an 80-mile round trip to a county courthouse, while getting a Tribal ID cost $15. This expense could be prohibitive for people on reservations with up to 80 percent unemployment.

With hundreds of Native voters lacking a proper ID, how was this group going to exercise the franchise at the same record rate as it had in 2002?

The Solution

Four Directions persuaded the Sicangu Oyate government (Rosebud Sioux Tribe) to make getting a Tribal ID free and easy.

The Four Directions Approach

Whenever anti-Indian officials throw up roadblocks to Native voters, Four Directions identifies the resources at our disposal and figures out how to solve the problem.

1. Leverage lasting relationships with Tribal nations

Four Directions had built lasting relationships with Tribal nations, which had observed that after Native voters made the difference in two consecutive elections, federal elected officials paid closer attention to Indian Country. If the state and counties threw up roadblocks, Tribal nations would take action to protect the rights of Native voters.

2. Identify the most efficient solution

To cast a ballot, Native voters needed to obtain the IDs they lacked. With the Rosebud Sioux Tribe committed to protecting Native voters, Four Directions suggested opening an office that could issue IDs close to the satellite voting office. Voters could make one trip to get an ID and cast a ballot. The Tribe liked this solution for empowering Native voters.

3. Take care of the cost

Tribal nations take on considerable costs when they open an ID office, staff it, and cover the $15 expense per document. Just as Four Directions identifies ways to control costs for local non- Tribal governments, the organization helped identify donors to cover the Sicangu Oyate’s cost for the IDs.

4. Raise awareness of the opportunity

After the Sicangu Oyate made Tribal IDs free and easy to obtain, Four Directions initiated a media campaign to raise awareness about the opportunity with radio public service announcements in Lakota and English and stories pitched to Indian newspapers.

The Result

More than 700 eligible Native voters who lacked a Tribal ID were able to get one at no cost and then cast a ballot at the nearby satellite voting office established by Four Directions.