The secretary of state on Monday said she would review a letter from the Rocky Mountain Tribal Leaders Council who are pressing her to establish satellite voting offices for Native Americans in 10 Montana counties. In a meeting with William “Snuffy” Main, Linda McCulloch said she is a “fan” of satellite offices and voting rights but could not give a definitive answer to the requests made in the letter as it had been in her possession less 24 hours. She said she was looking at the possibility of a directive but could not elaborate as to what the directive would say. Earlier this month, The Rocky Mountain Tribal leaders called on her to “issue a directive to Montana counties that have American Indian Reservations within their boundaries telling the counties that they must establish satellite voting offices for in-person absentee voting and later voter registration on those Indian Reservations within their boundaries for the 2016 general election. “
The letter stems from a 2012 lawsuit, when plaintiffs from the Crow, Northern Cheyenne and Fort Belknap Indian reservations sued McCulloch and the elections offices in Blaine, Rosebud and Big Horn counties, arguing Indians did not have the same voting opportunities.
The letter said McCulloch has the authority to establish the offices, citing a March 2014 order in the lawsuit from Judge Donald Molloy of the U.S. District Court in Missoula.
Full Article: Secretary of state discusses tribal letter on voting.