Fighting Voter Suppression Since 1492
Vice President JD Vance often speaks about "Heritage Americans," describing those whose ancestors arrived during the colonial era as having a unique claim to America's identity and culture. Yet that narrative overlooks a profound truth: the first Americans, the Indigenous peoples whose ancestors lived on this land long before 1492, have spent centuries fighting for rights that should never have been denied.
The story of Native American voting rights is, in many ways, the story of the American promise itself: a continuing struggle to make our nation live up to the ideals enshrined in the Constitution and the belief that all people are created equal.
For generations, Native Americans were excluded from full participation in our democracy. Early governments treated tribes as sovereign nations, using that status as a justification to deny Native people citizenship and the right to vote. Even after the Civil War, when the 14th Amendment established birthright citizenship and the 15th Amendment prohibited racial discrimination in voting, Native Americans were often denied those protections because many lived on reservations.
In 1924, the Indian Citizenship Act finally extended U.S. citizenship to all Native Americans born in the United States. Yet citizenship did not immediately translate into equal access to the ballot box. Across the West, Native voters faced poll taxes, literacy tests, and other discriminatory practices designed to silence their voices, barriers historians have aptly described as "Jim Crow, Indian-style."
Progress came with the Voting Rights Act of 1965, one of the most significant civil rights achievements in American history. The law helped expand voter registration and strengthened federal protections in communities where access to voting had been restricted. But the fight for voting rights did not end there.
Today, Native American communities continue to face unique barriers to participating in our democracy. The withdrawal of voter registration services from Indian Health Service facilities and restrictions that complicate voting by mail have a disproportionate impact on tribal communities, many of which are located far from polling places and postal facilities. For some families, casting a ballot can require traveling dozens of miles, creating obstacles that many other Americans never have to consider.
America is at its best when it expands freedom, not when it restricts it. The Constitution, our democratic institutions, and our shared values call us to ensure that every eligible citizen can participate fully in our elections. That responsibility belongs to all of us.
With the election approaching, now is the time to register voters, support early voting efforts, and encourage participation in every community. Democracy is strongest when every voice is heard and every vote is counted.
Our Future. Our Fight.
The views expressed here are those of the Indivisible Oregon editorial team,
one voice within a broader Indivisible movement.
