WyoFile: Getting out the votes on the Wind River Reservation

Tuesday, November 6, 2012  

"Micah Lott and Jenea Mandan, a pair of teenagers raised on the Wind River Indian Reservation, knock on the door of a modest wooden home in Beaver Creek, a small development on a barren rise just south of Riverton.

When Madonna Oldman answers her door, they hand her a flyer that explains where and when the polls open in her area and urge her to cast a ballot.

“There will be a feast for everyone who votes,” Lott says. “Come with your ‘I voted’ sticker and you can eat and get a T-shirt.” The tribes are holding feasts in Arapahoe, Fort Washakie and Ethete. Traditional meals of beef stew and fried bread are on the menu. About 300 pounds of beef have been purchased for the festivities, according to Jolene Catron, one of the organizers.

“I was thinking of voting,” says Oldman, 41, who is director of the Black Coal Senior Center in Arapahoe. “But I need a ride. My car broke down.”

The canvassers have an answer for that, as well. Voters can call for a ride to the polls. Lott will field calls on his cell phone all day Tuesday, and let van drivers know where to pick up voters."

Get the Story:
Getting Out the Native Vote: Reservation youth knock on doors (WyoFile 11/6)