UPDATE: Native American Voters Take Voting Rights Fight to the Supreme Court
Native voters from Spirit Lake Nation and Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa have filed a writ of certiorari asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear their voting rights case.
At issue: whether ordinary voters can sue under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act to challenge discriminatory maps, a right recognized for decades.
The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in May that only the federal government can bring such cases, stripping voters of a key protection.
Tribal leaders say the case is about fair representation and the basic right to be heard at the ballot box.
If the Supreme Court takes the case, it could become one of the most consequential voting rights battles in a generation, with implications nationwide.
Native voters from North Dakota are knocking on the doors of the U.S. Supreme Court. The Spirit Lake Nation, the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians, and several individual Native voters have filed a writ of certiorari, the formal request for the Court to take their case.
In plain terms: they’re asking the justices to hear what could be one of the most important voting rights battles of our time.
Why This Case Matters
At its core, this fight is about whether Native communities, and all Americans, have the power to challenge unfair voting maps.
For decades, Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act has given voters the right to go to court if politicians draw districts that dilute their communities’ voices. But in May, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals said private citizens don’t actually have that right, only the federal government does.
If that ruling stands, voters would be shut out of the courts. And the ripple effects could threaten voting rights nationwide.
Voices From the Front Lines
For tribal leaders, the stakes couldn’t be clearer.
“The current North Dakota voting map gives my community a chance to elect who we want to represent us, just like other communities across the state,” said Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Chair Jamie Azure. “Instead, the Eighth Circuit is saying Native voters and Tribal Nations don’t even have the right to fight for a fair map. That goes against the principles this country was founded on.”
Spirit Lake Tribal Chair Lonna J. Street didn’t mince words either: “We deserve representation just like everyone else. It is shameful that, when we finally succeeded in court, the state turned its attack against the Voting Rights Act itself. We need the Supreme Court to protect our fundamental right to vote and be heard.”
Individual plaintiffs echoed the frustration. “It is unacceptable that we must go all the way to the United States Supreme Court just to defend our right to a fair map,” said plaintiff Collette Brown of Spirit Lake. “Politicians should not be able to manipulate district lines to decide which voters get a voice.”
A Radical Ruling
Here’s what happened: after Native voters won a fair map in trial court, the state appealed. But instead of weighing whether the map was fair, the Eighth Circuit dropped a bombshell: voters can’t sue under Section 2 at all.
That means if your voting rights are violated in those states, your only hope is for the U.S. Department of Justice to step in. And history shows the DOJ can’t possibly take on every case.
Plaintiff Zachery S. King from Turtle Mountain summed it up: “They claimed that we don’t have the ability to fight back against lawmakers who treat us unfairly. That flies in the face of decades of court decisions. Of course, the Voting Rights Act gives us rights, and of course we can sue to enforce them.”
Why Everyone Should Care
This isn’t just about North Dakota. If the Supreme Court sides with the Eighth Circuit, it will gut one of the most powerful tools Americans have to fight racial discrimination at the ballot box.
“The protections of the Voting Rights Act must be enforceable by all Americans,” said Mark Gaber of the Campaign Legal Center. “If private individuals and organizations cannot bring lawsuits, the most important civil rights law Congress ever enacted will be gutted.”
Native American Rights Fund Staff Attorney Lenny Powell put it bluntly: “The Eighth Circuit’s decision is counter to democracy and decades of case law. We expect the Supreme Court to reverse this anti-democratic ruling.”
What Happens Next
By filing their writ of certiorari, the tribes and voters are asking the Supreme Court to step in. The justices don’t have to take the case, but if they do, it could become one of the most consequential voting rights cases in a generation.
The immediate question: will Native communities in North Dakota keep the fair maps they fought for?
The bigger question: will ordinary Americans still have the power to enforce their voting rights in court, or will that power be stripped away?
For Spirit Lake, Turtle Mountain, and Native voters across the Eighth Circuit, the answer will determine whether their voices matter at the ballot box. For the rest of the country, it will decide whether the Voting Rights Act remains a living law or a broken promise.