The often overlooked indigenous vote is critical for the Democratic Party to prevent a second presidential term for Donald Trump. According to data from the US Census Bureau, there are five million indigenous voters in the country, many of whom are in swing states that are crucial to winning the November 5 election.
Historically, Indigenous populations in the United States have voted in lower numbers than non-Indigenous people. As the Native American Rights Fund, which seeks to protect Indigenous rights, notes, several factors hinder Indigenous voter turnout. These barriers include housing instability, homelessness, the isolation of Indigenous communities, and unequal access to online and in-person registration.
Moreover, unlike some groups in society, Indigenous people are not a homogeneous bloc targeted by political parties. The Democratic Party focuses on winning support from African-American voters, Latinos, and union members, while the Republican Party appeals to religious people and the wealthy. Thus, being a member of an Indigenous community does not necessarily influence identification with one of the two dominant political parties.
Then, for some Indigenous people, voting gives the U.S. government unearned legitimacy based on violent and discriminatory colonial practices. Yet in the 2020 presidential election, polls indicate that 60 percent of Indigenous people across the country voted for Joe Biden.
This strong support from the American left has notably allowed Democrats to take Arizona and Wisconsin. According to the election results reported by Vox, voters from the Navajo, Hopi and Menominee nations voted overwhelmingly, if not almost exclusively, for Joe Biden over Donald Trump.
Contradictions
President Biden’s term has been marked by several investments in Indigenous peoples and by greater political representation of Indigenous peoples within the U.S. executive branch. For example, in March 2021, Biden invested a total of US$31 billion in various spending for Indigenous peoples through his Rescue Plan.
Additionally, the president nominated Deb Haaland, a member of the Laguna Pueblo Nation of New Mexico, to lead the Interior Department. She leads the Department of Natural Resources and the Bureau of Indian Affairs. During her tenure, she notably ordered an investigation into why so many murders and disappearances of Native women have gone unsolved and unsolved in Native communities.
Another advancement for Indigenous peoples during Biden’s term was the revocation of the Keystone XL pipeline permit in January 2021. This revocation forced the halt of this project which aimed to displace fossil fuels onto Indigenous territories.
Kamala Harris has also been part of the Biden administration’s push to better equip itself to address Indigenous issues. In 2023, she has delivered several speeches targeting Indigenous people at various events. For example, at the 2023 annual convention hosted by the National Congress of American Indians, the vice president reiterated Democrats’ commitment to Indigenous sovereignty and continued investment in communities across the United States.
However, efforts at reconciliation with Indigenous peoples conflict with the acceleration of projects related to the energy transition, a priority of the Biden administration.
As demonstrated by a survey carried out by the Washington Post In March 2024, renewable energy development plans to meet federal targets will potentially encroach on several indigenous communities’ ancestral lands. This is particularly the case for the SunZia project, a transmission line that brings electricity from huge wind farms in New Mexico to more populated areas such as California. The free, prior and informed consent of two indigenous nations living on ancestral lands that overlap this project is not being respected by the federal government.
Another source of discontent is also growing among indigenous communities and is reflected in polls. A study conducted by the African American Research Collaborative found that 61% of indigenous people feel that the current government does not take to heart the issues that specifically affect them.
Possible solutions
Notwithstanding the support of indigenous communities in recent elections and the reconciliation efforts during the last term, the Democratic Party under Kamala Harris will have to redouble its attention to the indigenous population. To ensure victory in the pivotal states that are so important to win for a seat in the White House, Kamala Harris must carry out reconciliation work that listens to the demands of indigenous peoples.
According to a recent national poll, 37% of Indigenous people believe that missing and murdered women are the main issue facing Indigenous communities. Next come land rights (32%), economic development on reserves (29%) and access to clean water (28%). So Harris will have to make these issues her main focus.
Another concrete step to preserve Native American electoral support would be to select Mark Kelly as a running mate. The senator from the swing state of Arizona is popular with Native Americans. In his last term, he passed legislation to ensure access to clean drinking water for the Yavapai-Apache Nation in the Verde Valley and for nations associated with the Colorado River reservation.
These political actions will potentially allow Kamala Harris and the Democratic Party not only to secure their victory in Arizona, but also to gain the support of voters essential to the race for the White House against Trump and the Republicans.