Although the start of early voting in Nevada is still a couple of weeks away, the first votes of the 2024 general election have already been cast.
That’s because earlier this month, tribal members living in the state’s 28 tribal communities gained access to the state’s digital absentee voting system. It’s part of an effort to improve access to the ballot for Indigenous voters across the state.
Native American Day is celebrated every fall, and at the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony, it starts with a group photo and a march through the streets.
Afterward, families and friends gather in the colony’s gym for food and fellowship.
Between the community competitions, an M.C. makes announcements.
“If you’re ready to vote right now, right now, go see the ladies at the voter registration table, and they will take care of you,” the announcer read.
In a corner, Emma Williams sits at a folding table with clipboards and voter registration forms.
Next to her, there’s a handmade “Natives Vote” poster and a placard with a QR code that takes you to a page on the Nevada Secretary of State's website for the Effective Absentee System for Elections, or EASE.
“We are helping the Secretary of State's office push EASE on tribal reservations,” Williams said. “Typically, the absentee ballot has been utilized for people who are in the military overseas. But now, tribal members who live on reservations have easier access to voting.”
The state developed EASE in 2014 to allow members of the armed forces and other overseas residents to cast absentee ballots online. State lawmakers broadened its use to encompass voters with disabilities in 2020, and last year, Republican Governor Joe Lombardo signed a law expanding its use to tribal communities.
That’s because Native Americans face historical and geographic obstacles to casting a ballot, including a lack of polling locations and unreliable mail servic
“It's one of the day-to-day challenges that you come to accept,” said Brian Mason, chairman of the Shoshone Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Reservation, which straddles the Nevada-Idaho state line, two hours north of Elko.
The only way on or off the reservation from Nevada is a single, two-lane road, often closed during bad weather.
In 2021, Duck Valley sued Elko County to secure the community’s first-ever in-person polling place.
Before that, tribal members just voted when they could, Mason said.
“If you couldn't make it to Elko, you just didn’t go, “ he said. “Now, I think it's a little bit easier for us. That everybody's appreciative of so they can partake in the election.”
The U.S. Census Bureau doesn’t report voter statistics for Indigenous voters. However, the Native American Rights Fund estimates that the average turnout during the last six election cycles was 37%, while turnout among white voters averaged around 51%.
Mathilda Miller is with the Native Voters Alliance of Nevada, one of the organizations that pushed for the expansion. She said EASE, along with voting by mail, allows Native voters in Nevada to have their voices heard like never before.
“I think it's a great opportunity, and I think it's great to see that this voting tool is being extended to our people,” she said.
Opponents of electronic voting have expressed doubts about the EASE system's security.
For Miller, those concerns are part of an effort to continue disenfranchising Native voters.
“It's allowing people who have the means and the infrastructure to cast your vote,” she said. “I'm excited about it, and I'm hoping that that will continue to happen with more years, more elections and more education. More people can take advantage of the system."
At the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony, several potential voters ask for information about EASE. Only one person used it but declined to talk about the experience. Most wanted to ensure they were registered. Others asked for information on candidates and issues.
"Climate change is huge,” said colony spokesperson Bethany Sam. “Health care systems, and what our Indian health services clinics can collect. Law enforcement and missing and murdered Indigenous peoples, the court systems and charging federal crimes on reservations.”
When asked if any candidates are addressing those concerns, Sam said some have made an effort and that it’s better than it used to be. But, she adds, just 100 years ago, her people were not considered American citizens. So, it will take a while longer before Native communities vote at the same levels as their non-Native counterparts.
“It's just three generations ago, and we're still overcoming a lot of the historical trauma that we deal with daily, poverty, mental wellness, trying to move forward,” Sam said. “That's part of our resilience.”
For in-person voting, the Secretary of State's office says there will be 18 polling locations on tribal land on election day, 12 early voting locations and eight ballot drop boxes available to Native voters throughout the state.
