‘Democracy is indigenous’: North Carolina Lumbee tribe promotes native vote

The largest Native American tribe east of the Mississippi River is headed to the polls and could have a decisive impact on the 2024 elections in North Carolina.

The Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina, approximately 55,000 strong, resides on their ancestral land of Robeson County, as well as the surrounding Hoke, Scotland, and Cumberland counties in the state’s rural southeast.

There are at least 26,000 registered voters who identify as Native American in Robeson County, the most of any county in the state, and more than 6,000 voters identify as Native American in the latter counties, state election data shows.

“There are a lot of voters in Robeson County, a lot of Native voters, and they vote; they make sure they vote,” said Gwen Locklear, a Lumbee citizen and founding member of the Triangle Native American Society.

“They could make decisions in some close races,” Locklear said.

One of those close races may be the presidential election. The majority of Robeson County voters have voted for every presidential candidate who has won North Carolina since 2008.

Data from the State Board of Elections shows that the early voting participation rate in Robeson County was about 20% of its nearly 80,000 registered voters as of Oct. 19, the date with the latest data available. That’s slightly below the 26% turnout in early voting statewide.

In Robeson and Scotland counties, registered Democratic voters outnumbered Republican and unaffiliated voters during the first days of voting, following a statewide trend.

Both the Kamala Harris and Donald Trump campaigns established active campaign offices in the diverse Robeson Countywhere the population is 42% Native American, 24% black and 11% Latino.

The county swung right in the 2016 general election, ending decades of strong Lumbee support for Democrats.

Lumbee political leaders he previously told WUNC That part of the reason was a decline in Democratic candidates’ involvement in the community over the past decade.

Both presidential candidates say they support the tribe’s key issue: federal recognition of the Lumbee Nation.

Cornell Watson

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For WUNC

Above all, Locklear says that indigenous voters across the eight state-recognized Native American tribes in North Carolina they simply want to be seen and heard.

“It’s about education, educating the public and (telling) those running for public office that ‘Hey, you have an indigenous, Native American community here,'” he said. “You have to support them. You have to find out who they are. They are a big part of your voters and the support they need.”

The tight-knit Native community is not a political monolith and openly supports both Democrats and Republicans and civic engagement in general, said Jesalyn Keziah, executive director of the Triangle Native American Society and a Lumbee citizen.

“We have strong opinions on both sides that will be reflected in the community at large…we truly work in a bipartisan manner,” Keziah said.

Strong civic engagement is important for Indigenous voters, who participate in elections within their respective tribal governments, he said.

“Democracy is indigenous,” Keziah said. “I’m talking about Native peoples really coming together collectively around decision-making and around what’s best for the good of the whole.”

The Triangle Native American Society reminded tribal members at an Indigenous Peoples’ Day celebration Oct. 14 in Apex that Election Day is near, informing voters through nonpartisan information booths.

“Instead of targeting a broad audience, we’re actually trying to specifically reach out to Native people,” Keziah said. “We have a really engaged Native community here, very intertribal and we tend to attend each other’s events. We’re trying to bring those resources to where the people are. We really encourage early voting, making sure people know the updates about it. election laws, making sure people know they can vote with their tribal IDs.

The organization is working with the National Coalition of Urban Indian Families, which is helping to spread the Native American vote in key states like North Carolina.

“It’s important for Indians to vote across the country,” said Jo Ann Chavis Locklear, a Lumbee citizen and lifelong Robeson resident. “It is especially important for our Indians in our state to go to the polls and vote for the people who support them.”

Chavis Locklear, 76, is an old-school supporter of Democrats who was not part of the shift toward Republican support.

Lumbee voters like her have supported Democrats for decades in blue-collar Robeson County, where citizens supported historic Democratic social and economic programs.

Chavis Locklear said she is baffled by Trump’s criminal allegations and what she said were broken promises in 2020 to support federal recognition of Lumbee.

“Younger voters are seduced by promises,” said Chavis Locklear. “(Trump) is promising you this…his son is coming here and he’s promising you this. I say he’s lying to you when he doesn’t even support (Columbus Day) being named Indigenous Peoples’ Day.”

Last week, campaign surrogates, namely former President Bill Clinton and Donald Trump Jr., held rallies in Lumbee communities in the final stretch before the election.

Each spoke about supporting full federal recognition of the Lumbee Tribe, according to The Robesonian.