The Chippewa Cree Tribe has a better shot at electing a county commissioner “who understands Native issues,” a tribal member said in a Tuesday statement following a settlement in a lawsuit that will create a Native-majority commission district in northcentral Montana’s Chouteau County.
Plaintiff Ken Morsette, a citizen of the Chippewa Cree Tribe, said the settlement will lead to better representation on the three-person commission that makes major decisions for the rural county of 5,880 people, almost 18% of whom are Native, according to census data. None of the three current county commissioners are Native American, according to the Native American Rights Fund, one of the organizations representing the plaintiffs in the case.
In August, the Chippewa Cree Tribe, along with Morsette and another Native American voter, filed a lawsuit against Chouteau County and its board of commissioners, alleging the county’s election system diluted the power of Native voters.
The U.S. District Court for the District of Montana on Monday approved a settlement in that case that will get rid of the existing “at-large” method of electing commissioners. Instead, the county will create District 1, where 63% of people old enough to vote are Native. Only people who live in District 1 can vote for its candidate. The people of voting age in the other two districts are 93% White, according to court documents.
Montana law requires county commissioners to be elected at-large unless a court orders otherwise.
Commissioners will continue to serve staggered, six-year terms with an election every two years. The next election will take place in June.
While tribes are sovereign nations, state and local governments have influence in Indian Country. Tribal citizens use county services, like garbage disposal and water systems, and interact with county law enforcement, school systems and other institutions.
Chouteau County overlaps with the Rocky Boy’s Reservation, which is the headquarters for the Chippewa Cree Tribe.
Plaintiffs alleged the at-large system violated the federal Voting Rights Act by “[depriving] Native American voters of a full and equal opportunity to elect a candidate of their choice.” They argued the at-large system “undermines the tribe’s political power.”
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Chippewa Cree Tribe sues Chouteau County, alleging unfair election system
The Chippewa Cree Tribe and two Native American voters filed a lawsuit against Chouteau County and the board of commissioners, alleging the county’s voting system dilutes the power of Native voters. It’s not the first lawsuit brought by tribal plaintiffs in Montana to challenge the at-large election system.
The agreements, according to the settlement, “are intended to provide Native American voters with an opportunity to elect a representative of their choice.”
Chippewa Cree Tribal Chair Harlan Gopher Baker said in a Tuesday statement that “the county did the right thing.”
“It has been more than a decade since we have had a Native voice in county politics,” he. “We look forward to being part of this conversation.”
The lawsuit isn’t the first in Montana to challenge the at-large voting system. In 1986, several tribal plaintiffs sued Big Horn County, challenging at-large elections for the board of commissioners and school board. The case resulted in the redrawing of school board and county commission district lines. In the following election, Big Horn County voters elected the first Native American to the commission.
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