The American Democracy Minute Radio News Report & Podcast for Nov. 27, 2025

For Thanksgiving, we’re rebroadcasting a story from 2024.  Sadly, nothing has changed in this story, and the proposed solutions remain in limbo.

The ink wasn’t yet dry on the Indian Citizens Act of 1924 when voter suppression of Native Americans began.  Natives have been fighting for their right to register and vote, proper representation, and fair voting districts ever since.

The Brennan Center for Justice writes that for decades, Arizona disenfranchised Native citizens because they were, QUOTE, “Persons under guardianship.”  New Mexico’s constitution stipulated that people who didn’t pay taxes, including Natives on reservations, could not vote.  

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 prohibited these suppression tactics.  But the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2013 Shelby decision opened a floodgate of new Native suppression in Arizona, Montana, South Dakota, North Dakota, Wisconsin, Nevada and other states.

Recently, proof of citizenship and voter ID laws have targeted Natives, some of whom don’t have an ID, or live in remote areas without street numbers.  Counties have used “at-large” voting districts to dilute Native voting power, or removed drop boxes or polling places, forcing voters to drive sometimes more than a hundred miles to vote.  

What can be done?  The federal Native American Voting Rights Act is stuck in Congress, but New Mexico passed its own version in 2023.  The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act restores protections stripped from the 1965 Voting Rights Act, and the Freedom to Vote Act would expand voting access for ALL Americans.  

We have resources at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. I’m Brian Beihl.  

Today’s Links
Articles & Resources:
Native American Rights Fund – (2020) Obstacles at Every Turn

Alaska Beacon – The importance of the Voting Rights Act for Indian Country
Brennan Center for Justice – How Voter Suppression Laws Target Native Americans
NPR – Sometimes overlooked by campaigns, Native voters could decide major elections in 2024
Split Ticket – The Largest Native American Voting Blocs
Intermountain Histories – Trujillo v. Garley: The Struggle for Native American Voting Rights
The White House – (2022) REPORT OF THE INTERAGENCY STEERING GROUP ON NATIVE AMERICAN VOTING RIGHTS
U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren – Native American Voting Rights Act
U.S. Congress – John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act

Groups Taking Action:
Native American Rights Fund, Native Vote, National Congress of American Indians, Declaration for American Democracy

Check Your Voter Registration:
U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Register And Vote in Your State

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#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #NativeVote #VoterSuppression #JohnLewisAct #FreedomtoVoteAct #NativeAmerican #Thanksgiving

The post The Supreme Court’s Attack on the Voting Rights Act of 1965 Affects Native American Voters, Too.  Proposed Legislation Could Fix It. appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio News Report & Podcast for July 23, 2025

In May, the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that individuals, in this case Native Americans, do not have a “private right of action” in voting rights cases.  An emergency stay was granted July 22nd, and it’s likely headed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

In 2021, the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians, the Spirit Lake Tribe and individual Native voters negotiated with the State of North Dakota to create voting districts which didn’t dilute Native voting power.  But after a 2023 8th Circuit decision in Arkansas, the State of North Dakota reneged on its deal with the tribes.  That decision said only the U.S. Justice Department – not individual voters – could bring suits to enforce the provisions of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. In actuality, since 1965, individuals brought 90% of VRA cases.

May 14th, a three-judge panel affirmed that individual voters cannot bring VRA cases – but it applies only in the 8th Circuit.  July 15th, the Turtle Mountain Band, Spirit Lake Tribe and individual Native voters asked for an emergency stay from Justice Brett Kavanaugh, pending a full U.S. Supreme Court appeal request.  The stay was granted July 16th.

On one hand, decades of precedent allow individuals to bring such VRA cases.  But this high court’s conservative majority often ignores precedent, and seeks ways to neutralize VRA protections for minority voters.

We have more at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

American Democracy Minute – (2023) Ripple Effects After Radical Federal 8th Circuit Court of Appeals Ruling Restricting Who Can Bring Voting Rights Act Suits; Red State AGs Pile On
Brennan Center for Justice – The Newest Attack on the Voting Rights Act
American Democracy Minute – (2024)  Look for 2025 Conservative Challenges to a ‘Private Right of Action’ for Voting Rights Cases, Attempting to Dismantle the Voting Rights Act
U.S. Supreme Court – EMERGENCY APPLICATION TO STAY THE EIGHTH CIRCUIT’S
MANDATE PENDING PETITION FOR WRIT OF CERTIORARI   
U.S. Supreme Court – Petition Granted by Justice Brett Kavanaugh
Courthouse News – Kavanaugh pauses major voting rights fight over tribal vote dilution in North Dakota

Groups Taking Action:

Native American Rights Fund, Turtle Mountain Band, Spirit Lake Nation

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Register And Vote in Your State

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Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

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#News #Democracy  #DemocracyNews #NativeVote #FairMaps #NorthDakota #VoterSuppression #RacialGerrymandering

The post Eighth Circuit ‘Private Right of Action’ Ruling Temporarily Halted by Justice Kavanaugh in Case by North Dakota Tribal Nations appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for March 27, 2025

Brian is so sick with a cold today that he can barely talk! This story from January is a good follow up to our March 24 story on Monday’s oral arguments for Louisiana v. Callais held in the U.S. Supreme Court. It’s a reminder that Voting Rights Act Section 2 claims not only come from Black Americans, discriminated against by majority-White governments since the country’s founding, but Native Americans and Hispanics as well – also routinely suppressed by drawing of unfair voting districts, and the manipulation of voting rules.

Click on the graphic below for script and links.

The post Rebroadcast: ND Native American Nation Prevails in Protecting Majority-Minority Voting Districts.  A Victory for Minority Voters, But GOP Efforts to Neutralize the VRA Continue appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Oct. 14, 2024

Today’s Script

(Variations occur with audio due to editing for time. Today’s Links below the script)

You’re listening to the American Democracy Minute, keeping YOUR government by and for the people.

The ink wasn’t yet dry on the Indian Citizens Act of 1924 when voter suppression of Native Americans began.  Natives have been fighting for their right to register and vote, proper representation, and fair voting districts ever since.

The Brennan Center for Justice writes that for decades, Arizona disenfranchised Native citizens because they were, QUOTE, “Persons under guardianship.”  New Mexico’s constitution stipulated that people who didn’t pay taxes, including Natives on reservations, could not vote.  

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 prohibited these suppression tactics.  But the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2013 Shelby decision opened a floodgate of new Native suppression in Arizona, Montana, South Dakota, North Dakota, Wisconsin, Nevada and other states.

Recently, proof of citizenship and voter ID laws have targeted Natives, some of whom don’t have an ID, or live in remote areas without street numbers.  Counties have used “at-large” voting districts to dilute Native voting power, or removed drop boxes or polling places, forcing voters to drive sometimes more than a hundred miles to vote.  

What can be done?  The federal Native American Voting Rights Act is stuck in Congress, but New Mexico passed its own version in 2023.  The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act restores protections stripped from the 1965 Voting Rights Act, and the Freedom to Vote Act would expand voting access for ALL Americans.  

We have resources at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. I’m Brian Beihl.  

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
Native American Rights Fund – (2020) Obstacles at Every Turn
Brennan Center for Justice – How Voter Suppression Laws Target Native Americans
NPR – Sometimes overlooked by campaigns, Native voters could decide major elections in 2024

Split Ticket – The Largest Native American Voting Blocs
Intermountain Histories – Trujillo v. Garley: The Struggle for Native American Voting Rights
The White House – (2022) REPORT OF THE INTERAGENCY STEERING GROUP ON NATIVE AMERICAN VOTING RIGHTS
U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren – Native American Voting Rights Act
U.S. Congress – John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act

National Conference of State Legislatures – Recently Enacted Legislation Impacting Native American Voters

Groups Taking Action:

Native American Rights Fund, Native Vote, National Congress of American Indians, Declaration for American Democracy

Check Your Voter Registration:

• U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Register And Vote in Your State
• USA Vote Foundation – Registration, Eligibility, State Election Office Links
• Vote.Gov – Register to Vote in Your State
• Vote.Org – Check Your Registration to Vote
  
  

Please follow us on Facebook and SHARE!  

Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

Want ADM sent to your email?  Sign up here!

Are you a radio station?  Find our broadcast files at Pacifica Radio Network’s Audioport and PRX

#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #NativeVote #VoterSuppression #JohnLewisAct #FreedomtoVoteAct

The post Suppression of Native American Voters is on the Rise.  Three Pieces of Pending Legislation Could Stop It. appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Aug. 27, 2024

Today’s Script

(Variations occur with audio due to editing for time. Today’s Links below the script)

You’re listening to the American Democracy Minute, keeping YOUR government by and for the people.

In a 5-4 vote August 22nd, the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated part of an Arizona voter suppression bill requiring citizens to provide proof of citizenship in addition to other identity documents.  

The law targets Native American voters, who sometimes don’t have birth certificates, and college students, who may not have the documents available.  Both groups skew liberal.

Arizona has two ballots for elections; a state ballot which includes local, state and federal candidates, and a federal-only ballot. The federal-only ballot uses an affidavit to swear to citizenship on penalty of perjury, but does not require the documents.  Democracy news outlet Votebeat found college students often use the federal-only ballot.

A 2022 Arizona law, House Bill 2492, requires that citizens registering to vote provide a birth certificate, passport or naturalization papers to register for either the state and federal, or federal-only, ballots.  Democracy groups argued it violated both the National Voter Registration Act and 1964 Civil Rights Act.  A recent study found 9% of Americans don’t have ready access to a birth certificate.  

In its short, unsigned decision, the high court allowed Arizona to enforce the law for the state and federal ballot, but not on the separate federal-only ballot, preserving the ability to vote for President, Vice President, House, and Senate races, but shutting those voters out of local and state elections.  

We’ve linked to more at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. I’m Brian Beihl. 

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
Arizona Legislature – House Bill 2492
U.S. Justice Department – (March 2024) U.S. District Court Finds That Arizona Voter Registration Provisions Violate Federal Law
ACLU – Voting Rights Groups File Amicus Brief to Protect Arizona’s Eligible Voters from Documentary Proof of Citizenship Law
SCOTUS Blog – Justices allow Arizona to enforce proof-of-citizenship law for 2024 voter registration

NPR – Supreme Court grants GOP bid to require citizenship proof for some Arizona voters
Votebeat – Arizona’s federal-only voters are concentrated on college campuses, data show

Groups Taking Action:

Mi Familia Vota, League of Women Voters

Check Your Voter Registration:

• U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Register And Vote in Your State
• USA Vote Foundation – Registration, Eligibility, State Election Office Links
• Vote.Gov – Register to Vote in Your State
• Vote.Org – Check Your Registration to Vote
  
  

Please follow us on Facebook and Twitter and SHARE!  

Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

Want ADM sent to your email?  Sign up here!

Are you a radio station?  Find our broadcast files at Pacifica Radio Network’s Audioport and PRX

#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #Arizona #VoterSuppression #SCOTUS #USSupremeCourt

The post U.S. Supreme Court Restores Arizona Law Aimed at Disenfranchising Native Americans and College Students appeared first on American Democracy Minute.