A Montana county that is home to the Fort Belknap Reservation is still fighting a Native voting rights lawsuit it lost.

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Blaine County's "at-large" system of electing commissioners diluted the Native vote. The ruling forced the county to change the system, resulting in the election of the first Native American.

But the commissioners voted 2-1, with tribal member Dolores Plumage opposing, to appeal the case to the U.S. Supreme Court. The county says the federal government can't force a change in the system.

The county's population is 45 percent Native.

Get the Story:
Blaine voting system faces U.S. Supreme Court review (The Great Falls Tribune 3/29)

Get the Decision:
US v. BLAINE COUNTY (April 7, 2004)

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