'We can't afford to not be heard:' Native American voters speak out about the importance of their vote in Wisconsin

 

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- It's been 100 years since Native Americans were granted the right to vote, and now that power could be the pivotal key for swing states in November's election.

According to Four Directions, a national native-led voting rights organization, there are 91,000 Native Americans of voting age who live in Wisconsin.

In 2020, President Biden narrowly won the state by just 20,000 votes, and now Milwaukee community leaders are highlighting the importance of every vote.

“If we don’t vote, then we shouldn’t complain," said Richard Randall, a proud American Indian voter. “If you can’t put 20 minutes out of your life to vote, why not?”

Randall noted his mother, aunt, cousins, and remaining family on the reservation all also make it a point to vote.

“There are tribes out there still that don’t have electricity, are using wood-burning stoves to heat their places because they don’t have resources to do that, but some still vote," Randall said. “We are stepping up and voting like we should be.”

People like Randall and his loved ones are the target demographic for those like Averie Anderson, who is the chair of Milwaukee group Warriors for Sovereignty.

"Native interests are everyone's interests," Anderson told CBS 58's Ellie Nakamoto-White. “Our goal is to get as many Native voters out to the polls before and on Nov. 5.”

She and her team said they are specifically focusing on making sure those who want to vote can.

"To give them that opportunity, if maybe they don’t have transportation," Anderson said. “Know that your voice counts, your vote counts and it is impactful.”

That sentiment is also echoed by Mark Denning, an American Indian leader in Milwaukee.

“We cannot afford to not be heard," Denning said. “My grandparents couldn’t vote and now I can... for me, when I get in that booth, it’s about those people that came before me, it’s about those people that are here and now, and it’s about those ones to come.”

Denning added that voting is a chance for a voice to be heard, and he hopes the community will step back and acknowledge Native American presence. 

“Our vote isn’t always guaranteed. We got to work to keep that vote and for that vote to matter," Denning said. “I think the Native American vote is vital and critical because even though we may be 1% or 2% of the state's population, remember that in the last election, it was settled between 1%.”