Group targets Indian voters

By KATHY KORENGEL

Herald Writer

TULALIP — Maureen Hoban said she’s lived on the Tulalip Indian Reservation for many years, but she saw something during this last election she hasn’t seen before.

"There were young tribal members waving voting signs on the sidewalks," said Hoban, who is not a Tulalip.

"They not only were voting themselves, they were getting others out to vote," Hoban said. "That’s a first."

Hoban, like others, attributes the increasing political interest among Tulalips partly to the campaign of John McCoy, a tribal member who ran for state Legislature, but was not elected.

But also, she, like others, sees it as a sign of success of the efforts of a nonprofit group of tribal members that recently formed to educate the public about American Indian issues. And to encourage tribal members to get involved in the political process.

The group is called the First American Education Project. And according to a preliminary analysis of voter registration and turnout among the state’s American Indians, those efforts have paid off.

In precincts that are predominantly Indian, more than 4,650 new people registered to vote for the last election and 69.9 percent of registered voters in those precincts made it to the polls, based on data from the county auditor’s offices, said Russ Lehman, managing director of the education project.

The educational agency is a nonprofit, nonpartisan corporation first formed by tribal members in Washington state in 1999. Members of the Olympia-based group now come from 45 tribes from throughout the country, Lehman said.

"We formed to educate the public on issues of interest to Indian people," Lehman said. "And a part of that was to use (Sen.) Slade Gorton to do that for us."

McCoy, the Tulalips’ executive director of governmental affairs, said Gorton was singled out because of longstanding differences with tribes over their sovereign status and on environmental issues that affect tribes.

Gorton did not return calls for comment.

Although the group has branched out from its focus on Gorton, it hopes to educate the public on similar Indian issues.

"Indian voters care about pretty much the same things as other voters: the environment, education, health care," Lehman said.

"But they also have unique issues, like the right to self-governance that they were given by treaty hundreds of years ago," he said.

The group has worked to further its goals in many ways: through public forums, a recent "sovereign rally" at the University of Washington, and even running television ads during the recent election espousing its opposition to Gorton’s views.

The group plans to hold an educational seminar for state legislators in the first week of January, McCoy said, "a kind of Indian Law 101."

But of all the group’s activities, Lehman said the most exciting part of the project has been seeing Indians become more involved in the political process.

"We see individuals voting and working on campaigns and running for office," he said, adding that six American Indians were newly elected to office in Montana in the last election, as were several others in Oklahoma.

American Indians "are acting as full participants in the process. It’s exciting," he said.

Talk to us

More in Local News

Marysville firefighters respond to a 12-year-old boy who fell down a well Tuesday May 30, 2023 in Marysville, Washington. (Photo provided by Marysville Fire District)
Marysville firefighters save boy who fell 20 feet into well

The 12-year-old child held himself up by grabbing on to a plastic pipe while firefighters worked to save him.

Highway 9 is set to be closed in both directions for a week as construction crews build a roundabout at the intersection with Vernon Road. (Washington State Department of Transportation)
Weeklong closure coming to Highway 9 section in Lake Stevens

Travelers should expect delays or find another way from Friday to Thursday between Highway 204 and Lundeen Parkway.

Students arriving off the bus get in line to score some waffles during a free pancake and waffle breakfast at Lowell Elementary School on Friday, May 26, 2023, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
800 free pancakes at Everett’s Lowell Elementary feed the masses

The annual breakfast was started to connect the community and the school, as well as to get people to interact.

Marysville Mayor Jon Nehring speaks at the groundbreaking event for the I-5/SR 529 Interchange project on Tuesday, May 23, 2023 in Marysville, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
$123M project starting on Highway 529 interchange, I-5 HOV lane

A reader wondered why the highway had a lane closure despite not seeing work done. Crews were waiting on the weather.

Justin Bell was convicted earlier this month of first-degree assault for a December 2017 shooting outside a Value Village in Everett. (Caleb Hutton / Herald file)
Court: Snohomish County jurors’ opaque masks didn’t taint verdict

During the pandemic, Justin Bell, 32, went on trial for a shooting. Bell claims his right to an impartial jury was violated.

Gary Fontes uprights a tree that fell over in front of The Fontes Manor — a miniature handmade bed and breakfast — on Friday, May 12, 2023, at his home near Silver Lake in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Everett’s mini-Frank Lloyd Wright builds neighborhood of extra tiny homes

A tiny lighthouse, a spooky mansion and more: Gary Fontes’ miniature world of architectural wonders is one-twelfth the size of real life.

Will Steffener
Inslee appoints Steffener as Superior Court judge

Attorney Will Steffener will replace Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Janice Ellis, who is retiring in June.

Logo for news use featuring the municipality of Snohomish in Snohomish County, Washington. 220118
Report of downed hot air balloon turns up farmer’s tarp near Snohomish

Two 911 callers believed they saw a hot air balloon crash, leading to a major search-and-rescue response. It was a false alarm.

A few weeks before what could be her final professional UFC fight, Miranda Granger grimaces as she pushes a 45-pound plate up her driveway on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, in Lake Stevens, Washington. Her daughter Austin, age 11 months, is strapped to her back. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Daily Herald staff wins 5 honors at annual journalism competition

The Herald got one first-place win and four runner-up spots in SPJ’s Northwest Excellence in Journalism contest.

Most Read