When we think about voting, most people picture the big races splashed across national news: the presidency, Congress, the White House. But in our Native communities here in Montana, it’s often the quieter, local elections that decide the things we feel every day.
I remember my first time visiting a reservation community during an election year while working for a political campaign. Everywhere we looked, all that was being talked about was the presidential race—the debates, the money being spent on ads, the promises being made. But when I heard ordinary Montanans talking about the things that mattered most to them, their answers weren’t about Washington, D.C. They talked about whether the road to the clinic would be fixed before winter, if the local school would continue its Native language program, and whether the county sheriff respected tribal sovereignty.
None of those decisions came from Congress. They came from local officials like school board members, county commissioners, sheriffs, state legislators, and judges.
For many Native families, a single vote on a school board can determine whether our children learn Native history truthfully or whether they continue to be erased from the curriculum. One county commissioner’s vote can decide whether federal funding for infrastructure reaches the reservation or gets spent elsewhere. The outcome of a sheriff’s race can shape how justice is applied in border towns, where Native people often face discrimination.
And even when the federal government approves millions of dollars for healthcare or housing, it’s state and local governments that decide how—and if—those resources reach our people.
Local election officials also have a lot of control over the very act of voting. They sometimes choose polling locations, set hours, and decide how and when our ballots are distributed. On reservations, where many families live miles from the nearest polling place, these decisions can mean the difference between casting a ballot and being shut out of the process entirely. That’s why showing up in local elections isn’t just about policy—it’s about protecting our right to have a say at all.
Every time Native people turn out to vote locally, we build a foundation of power that cannot be ignored. That foundation helps us elect leaders who understand our communities, strengthens tribal sovereignty, and ensures our voices echo beyond the borders of the reservation. While the nation debates what happens in Washington, our everyday lives are shaped in council chambers, courtrooms, and school board meetings just down the road.
Federal elections may grab the spotlight and garner the most cash, but local elections determine whether our kids see their language in school, whether our roads are safe, and whether justice is fair. By voting locally, we don’t just react to the world around us—we shape it, right here at home.