A look at the controversy surrounding the electoral identity of voters in North Dakota

But in September, the US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit lifted the injunction and the Supreme Court refused to restore it.

What do proponents say about the requirement?

State officials said that it was necessary to prevent electoral fraud, especially because North Dakota does not require voter registration (voters can simply bring their identity card to polling stations on polling day). And they argue that no eligible voter will be deprived of the right to vote.

In a letter to tribal chiefs, the state secretary's office wrote that any elector without a residential address could contact the 911 coordinator of his county, describe the location of his home and be assigned quickly and free of charge an address that the coordinator could confirm. in an official letter. The elector can then use this letter to obtain a new identification or present it at the polling station with an identity card that would not have been sufficient.

Nevertheless, the number of people affected and the fact that the elections are so close together create a huge logistical challenge.

How do Native Americans react?

Rights groups have met with tribal leaders in all far-flung reserves in North Dakota, trying to find a way to help voters get the addresses and identity they need through process described by the state. It's a big challenge.

One of the groups, Four Directions, has developed its own plan. In a letter to Secretary of State Al Jaeger, it was suggested that tribal officials be stationed at all polling stations with state reserves, ready to issue letters of identification on letterheads. . They would use an addressing system established for rural areas to assign residential addresses on-site.

Oliver and Barbara Semans, co-executive directors of Four Directions, said they believed that Mr. Jaeger had "no power to prevent tribal governments from implementing this plan" because "tribal governments have the inherent sovereignty of issuing residential addresses to any member of the tribe. who may not have such an address. But they urged him to "publicly support her".

Mr. Jaeger refused. "This is not appropriate for me to do because it is a legal issue that goes beyond the power of this office to know whether a sovereign tribe has these powers in their jurisdiction," he wrote. in an answer that his office had provided to The New York Hours on Thursday.