Voting in North Dakota’s 2018 Election

October 18, 2018

Categories: Civil Rights (Voting Rights, Juries, Census)

NARF is working in conjunction with the Spirit Lake Tribe, Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians, and the Three Affiliated Tribes (“MHA”), as well as community organizations Four Directions and Western Native Voice, to ensure that tribal members living in North Dakota who come to the polls on Election Day will be provided voter identification free of charge.

Lack of an identification or a current residential street address should not stop any qualified Native American voter from coming to the polls to vote.

What is a qualifying ID?

A driver’s license or non-driver’s identification card issued by the North Dakota Department of Transportation; or

A tribally issued identification. According to the court order, a tribally issued identification can consist of:

A tribal ID card issued by the tribe, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, or any other tribal agency or entity

A document, letter, writing, enrollment card, or other form of tribal identification issued by a tribal authority

Because of the court order, tribal governments can now issue voter identification letters at the polls and we are working to make sure that every North Dakota tribe is able to make these voter identification letters available at the polls free of charge.

What must be on the voter identification?

Full Legal Name

Birth Date

Current Residential Address in North Dakota

What do I do if I am missing my birth date or address information on my ID?

You can bring your ID and another document that shows the missing or outdated information by showing a current utility bill; a current bank statement; a check or a document issued by a federal, state, local, or tribal government (including those issued by any tribal agency or entity or the BIA, or any other document that sets forth the tribal member’s name, date of birth, and current North Dakota residential address); or a paycheck.

What if I do not have an ID that qualifies, supplemental document, or a current residential street address?

Show up to vote on November 6th. Tribal IDs will be available. If possible, please also contact your tribe and vote@narf.org so we can make sure that you are able to receive the assistance you need.

Read the related statement from the tribes:

North Dakota Tribes Stand United Against Suppressive Voter ID Law

North Dakota (October 17, 2018) – The Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians, Spirit Lake Tribe, Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, and the Three Affiliated Tribes (“MHA”) stand united against North Dakota’s suppressive voter ID law. Together with tribal advocates the Native American Rights Fund, Four Directions, Western Native Voice, and Native Vote we are fighting back. Under the Federal District Court Order, tribes are now able to issue tribal documents that contain the voter’s name, birth date, and current residential street address in North Dakota. We intend to issue these documents at polling locations within the bounds of our reservations on Election Day.

We believe the requirement of a physical, residential property with a street address was intended to disenfranchise Native American voters. To combat the disenfranchisement of our members, we intend to ensure our members that lack residential street addresses can obtain them so they may exercise their right to vote. Due to the financial support of organizations and individual donors, we are able to provide these services to our members. We thank the American people who have donated and have helped us fight this injustice. We still have much work to do before November 6th, and after, to ensure that this suppressive law does not permanently keep Native Americans from voting in North Dakota.

We encourage all tribal people to come out to vote on November 6th even if you do not have a qualifying ID. We will not be silenced by the blatant attempts to rob our people of our voice.

#standingrockvotes #turtlemountainvotes #spiritlakevotes #mhavotes

Read more about the North Dakota voter ID case.