New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse-Oliver Convenes Native American Voting Task Force

New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse-Oliver knows it’s her job to make it easier for all eligible New Mexicans to vote. That’s why, inspired by legislation introduced by New Mexico state Representative Derrick Lente, Toulouse-Oliver kicked off her Native American Voting Task Force this November.

“Voter participation among Native Americans has been lower than in other New Mexico communities,” Toulouse-Oliver said. “This task force — made up of people from pueblos and tribal communities across New Mexico, both urban and rural — is charged with identifying ways to ensure that everyone has equal access to the ballot and that they have faith the ballot is secure.”

According to research conducted by the secretary of state’s office, voter turnout in precincts with Native American communities is among the lowest in the state. The newly formed Native American Voting Task Force has agreed to produce recommendations to more proactively reduce the historical barriers to voting in these important and diverse communities, including finding ways to make sure eligible Native Americans are able to register and vote with the same convenience that other New Mexicans enjoy.

“This task force — made up of people from pueblos and tribal communities across New Mexico, both urban and rural — is charged with identifying ways to ensure that everyone has equal access to the ballot and that they have faith the ballot is secure.” -New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse-Oliver

State Rep. Lente, who sponsored legislation to convene the task force that did not make the state Senate floor prior to the session’s end, said that New Mexico can’t lose track of native people’s history of disenfranchisement by the U.S. voting system.

“Native Americans only got the right to vote in 1948,” Lente said. “That’s after my father was born. This isn’t ancient history we’re talking about. It’s about time we take a hard look at systemic ways we can make it easier for native communities to participate in these critical elections.”

State Rep. Lente said that educating members of his community about important issues can be difficult because some native people don’t have landlines. Even visiting constituents at their homes poses a challenge because members of the Native American community often have post office boxes rather than street addresses. Many people in rural Navajo country are forced to travel more than 50 or 100 miles to reach their nearest polling place.

Simple adjustments, such as advertising for elections at chapter houses, expanding absentee and vote-by-mail opportunities and offering transportation for elders would make a significant difference in boosting Native American voter turnout. These and other initiatives are the type of solutions State Rep. Lente hopes will come out of this task force.

“It’s about time we take a hard look at systemic ways we can make it easier for native communities to participate in these critical elections.” -New Mexico state Representative Derrick Lente

“My people fought and died for this country before they had the right to vote for who would represent them. That’s not right,” State Rep. Lente said, adding that elections often have profound implications for native communities. Currently, for instance, special interests are trying to expand fracking into Chaco Canyon, the ancestral homeland to many of his constituents.

“Our people need to have a say in that,” State Rep. Lente said. “I’m glad that Sec. Toulouse-Oliver is joining with us in figuring out how to fix the systems that make it harder for native people to vote.”

Task force member and executive director of the Native Americans Voters Alliance Laurie Weahkee is encouraged by the initiative.

“We think this task force is important to ensure that Native Americans are included in the electoral process,“ Weahkee said during a phone interview. “We applaud the secretary of state’s commitment to running competent and secure elections that make sure our votes are counted and our voices are heard.”