Native Vote 2018

NATIVE VOICES, NATIVE VOTES

What a year for voter turnout in Wisconsin’s Native American communities!

Thanks to a great team of staff and volunteers, new partnerships, and your support, Wisconsin Native Vote made a big splash in eight Native communities in 2018, helping to turnout record numbers of voters on Election Day and developing new leaders in Wisconsin’s tribal communities.

Attempts by the legislature and Governor Walker to suppress voter turnout in recent years made our Native Vote program more important than ever. We focused heavily on educating people about how to register to vote, what voting laws had changed, and what forms of ID they needed to bring to the polls.

During Native Vote 2018, we talked with thousands of voters about what motivates them to show up to the polls. We used social media to highlight dozens of community members who were committed to casting their vote on Election Day. And, we created a “buzz” about voting in Native communities, using social media, community events, “Vote for my Future” and “I Vote for the 7th Generation” signs, and even Native Vote-branded cookies.

Social media and earned media were important tools for answering questions about voting and recruiting volunteers. Our Facebook reach during the last three weeks of the election was over 80,000, and during the course of the program, Facebook likes went up over 350%. Most importantly, Facebook became a “go to” place to get information about voting. One meme we posted with general information about voting was shared 45 times, including on several tribes’ official pages, by indigenous student groups, and by Native media.

The week before Election Day, we knocked on almost 4,000 doors on eight reservations, entirely with volunteers from tribal communities!

In Bad River, we knocked during trick or treating, a big event in the community, handing out Native Vote cookies, which made our interactions more fun and memorable.

We also worked with partner groups like the ACLU and law students from the Great Lakes Indigenous Law Center at UW-Madison Law School to do election protection at polling places in Native communities.

All that work paid off, with high voter turnout in Native communities across Wisconsin. In fact, in four of our key communities, voter turnout was between 76% and 85%!

We couldn’t have done it without your support. Every voter we engaged, every leader we trained, and every person we educated all that we accomplished - happened because of you. Thank you for investing in Wisconsin Conservation Voices and in Native Vote!

“I loved helping citizens learn and understand voting processes, and it was great to see strong turnout for volunteers in our communities. It was also great to see that communities were excited to see their own members learning and getting out the vote and to see how many elders and veterans are proud and routine in exercising their rights and voices. This year the excitement of crossing barriers and creating change was felt in each community across Indian Country!”

- Aurora Conley, First Nations Organizer

4000 8

Knocked on almost DOORS on , RESERVATIONS

3

Worked with

TRIBAL GOVERNMENTS

to provide proof of residency

letters to members

80000

Reached over people , on FACEBOOK in the final three weeks

12

Recruited UW LAW students to do election protection at POLLING PLACES

10

15000

$

Ran

,

worth of DIGITAL ADS

Facebook likes went up over

350

% in 3

MONTHS

VOTER TURNOUT HIGHLIGHTS IN 2018

85 % in Red Cliff 82% in Bad River 78 % in Lac du Flambeau 76 % in Menominee

Native Vote materials were written Biinjiwebinama gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica in gicasix gica Native g languages. Thanks Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinama nvootow nvootow Biinjiwebinamaw nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootowBiinjiwebinamaw nvootow nvootow nvootow gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica to gica gWenona Wolf, St. Croix tribal Onapamaew Onapamaew Onapamaew Onapamaew Onapamaew Onapamaew Onapamaew Onap nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot member and Kids Forward Onapamaew Onapamaew Onapamaew Onapamaew Onapamaew Onapamaew Onapamaew Onap Wa>tehsanityohkwak<ny@hna> Wa>tehsanityohkwak<ny@hna> Wa>tehsanityohkwak<ny@hna> Wa>tehsanit Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinama staff member, for designing Wa>tehsanityohkwak<ny@hna> Wa>tehsanityohkwak<ny@hna> Wa>tehsanityohkwak<ny@hna> Wa>tehsanit gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gi Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinama these! nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow gica gica gica nvootow gica gica nvootow gica gicanvootow gica gica gica gica gica nvootow gica gicanvootow gica gica gi

vote vote

Biinjiwebinamaw

Biinjiwebinamaw

Biinjiwebinamaw

Biinjiwebinamaw

Biinjiwebinamaw

Onapamaew Onapamaew Onapamaew Onapamaew Onapamaew Onapamaew Onapamaew nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow Onap Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Onapamaew Mbot Mbot Onapamaew Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot Onap Mbot Onapamaew Onapamaew Onapamaew Onapamaew Onapamaew

Wa>tehsanityohkwak<ny@hna> Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot

Wa>tehsanityohkwak<ny@hna> Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot MbotWa>tehsanityohkwak<ny@hna> Mbot Mbot Mbot Mbot

Wa>tehsanit Mbot

Wa>tehsanityohkwak<ny@hna> Wa>tehsanityohkwak<ny@hna> Wa>tehsanityohkwak<ny@hna> Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinamaw Wa>tehsanit Biinjiwebinama Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinamaw Biinjiwebinama gicaBiinjiwebinamaw gica gica gica gica gica Biinjiwebinamaw gica gica gica gica gica Biinjiwebinamaw gica gica gica gica gica gica gica gica nvootow nvootow nvootow

Onapamaew

nvootow

Onapamaew

Mbot

Mbot

Mbot

gica gica nvootow gica gicanvootow gica gica gica nvootow nvootow nvootow

Onapamaew

Mbot

Onapamaew

Mbot

Mbot

Mbot

Mbot

Wa>tehsanityohkwak<ny@hna>

nvootow

Onapamaew

Wa>tehsanityohkwak<ny@hna>

nvootow

Onapamaew

Mbot

Mbot

Mbot Mbot

nvootow

Onapamaew

Onapamaew

Mbot

Mbot

gica gica nvootow gica gicanvootow gica gica nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow nvootow

nvootow

Onapamaew

Onapamaew

Mbot

Mbot

Wa>tehsanityohkwak<ny@hna> Wa>tehsanityohkwak<ny@hna>

Mbot

Mbot

Onapamaew

Onapamaew

Mbot

Mbot

Mbot

Mbot

Onapamaew

Onapamaew

Mbot

Mbot

Mbot

Mbot

Wa>tehsanityohkwak<ny@hna>

Wa>tehsanityohkwak<ny@hna>

Tuesday, November66 Tuesday, November

Onap

Onap

Mbot

Mbot

Wa>tehsanit

Wa>tehsanit

Native Vote organizer Dee Sweet (center, bottom) and volunteers braved sleet and snow in Menominee to get out the vote.

UW-Madison law students Catelin Aiwohi and Lorenzo Gudino spent Election Day doing election protection in Keshena.

Gwayako-Biimaadiziwin, which means “a changed life” in English, knocked on doors in Lac Courte Oreilles to remind tribal members about the November elections.

Matt Dannenberg, Wisconsin Conservation Voices program director and Bad River tribal member, accepts a Kids Forward Giraffe Award for Native Vote alongside Angela Lange of Black Leaders Organizing for Communities (BLOC).

Social media was an important way to share valuable information about voter laws. This particular piece was shared 45 times on Facebook, including on several tribes’ pages, by indigenous student groups, and by members of the Native American media.