The start of fall signals the beginning of election season, and as we gear up for the coming electoral contest, it’s worth revisiting the important work of Get Out the Native Vote (GOTNV), the non-profit and non-partisan organization that ensures Alaska Natives are registered to vote and eliminates barriers that prevent registered voters from casting their ballots.

Since 2021, GOTNV has been engaging Alaska Native communities from across 40 different organizations to develop a new strategic plan that will shape this election cycle and beyond. Priorities will focus on leadership development and youth support, collecting and sharing data that improves voter registration and turnout, voter education so that people understand how and when to vote and can make informed decisions regarding issues and candidates, and advocacy to ensure Native voices are heard across the political spectrum.

Some of those priorities are already coming into play. Since the 2022 midterms, GOTNV has made great strides in engaging young people to sign up as youth ambassadors under the Division of Elections. These 16- and 17-year-old students can help run the polling booth, an important part of being democracy in action, building leadership skills, and seeing their community’s right to vote.

Michelle Sparck, GOTNV’s Director of Strategic Initiatives, points out that youth engagement has an echo effect. “It’s exciting, because on one hand we’re getting young people involved and planting the seeds for the next generation of engaged super voters. And they’re also able to amplify the importance of voting and elections. Their enthusiasm and dedication gets their families and their communities excited.”

Sparck sees another benefit in the way youth involvement in the voting process echoes: it underscores the importance of volunteerism and civic responsibility. This kind of volunteerism demonstrates, in a tangible way, that contributing to your community can have incredible impact and resonance.

GOTNV’s top priority continues to be removing barriers to voting. Whether it’s issues with voter registration, lack of language access, inaccurate voter rolls, geographic isolation, logistical challenges, or systemic challenges like poverty and discrimination, Alaska Natives face a host of challenges that diminish the want or the ability to vote. Voter apathy remains a challenge that’s even harder to address because it’s grounded in a feeling—the feeling voters have that their voices and votes don’t matter.

This is where the new strategic priorities come into play. The hybrid approach of removing barriers, tapping and learning from the best available data, and sharing information about the mechanics of voting and the candidates and issues all have the desired effect of motivating and inspiring voters.

This is especially important in rural Alaska. Rural precincts represent over 60,000 Alaska Native voters. That’s a sizeable portion of Alaska’s population and an important voting bloc that can shape the future regarding how we benefit—or don’t—from some of the issues that face our communities. Regardless of where you fall on the political spectrum, there are issues on the table in every election—infrastructure, education, healthcare, and the economy—that deeply affect our Native way of life. GOTNV is committed to helping people understand the important link between our Alaska Native Values and how we vote.

“We know what we’re capable of when we get out there and vote,” Sparck reminds us. “Let’s start shaking off the shackle and removing barriers and get out the vote!”

To learn more about GOTNV, click here.