GREAT FALLS — While most Montanas are able to begin early voting this week, Native American voters on the Fort Peck Reservation continue the fight for their voting rights with a lawsuit asking for two satellite voting offices to be established closer to the reservation.
Settlement negotiations began Tuesday morning between the Native American plaintiffs and Valley and Roosevelt counties.
The counties have argued they are unable to open satellite voting locations due to challenges in recruiting staff to operate the satellite offices.
Healy explains working to help the counties overcome these challenges, stating, “We took an opportunity to help find staffing for these offices. Nobody wants this to be a sloppy process, it cannot be, so we’re wanting to make sure that the appropriate training is in place. One shouldn't say, ‘Well, it's too tough to get it done together for this election, so we better wait for the next one’. And so all that being said, we're delighted that, at least for right now, we've got our side and the defense side talking, and trying to come to a feasible solution."
The plaintiffs are requesting satellite voting offices that are open at least a total of 179 hours, the same amount of time as any election office open from 8am to 5pm adds up to in most other areas of the state.
Despite there being less than thirty days until election day, Healy says there is ample time to set up offices and train staff, citing similar cases in which satellite offices were up and running in less than two weeks. “It's never too late or never too close to an election for the equal right to vote to be considered," Healy says.
After a hearing Monday October 7th, a continuance was set for October 18th. For now, the two parties are engaging in settlement discussions and working toward creating a reasonable and feasible solution ahead of the upcoming election.
