Given the historical context of voting rights and the challenges faced by Native American communities in accessing polling places and mail services, it is possible that the court may side with the Navajo Nation to extend the ballot collection deadline. This could be seen as a necessary accommodation to ensure fair access to voting for underserved populations, especially in light of the logistical issues highlighted in the lawsuit.
"Voting Access for Native Americans"
by Candice Norwood
Another lawsuit, brought by members of the Navajo Nation, seeks to change Arizona’s requirement that mail ballots must be received by 7 p.m. on Election Day in order to be counted. Native Americans instead want ballots postmarked by Nov. 3 and received by Nov. 13 to be counted, which a number of states have done to accommodate voting during the pandemic.
The plaintiffs’ complaint pointed to the fact that there is one post office for every 707 square miles on the reservation, and that only about 29 percent of tribe members own cars. The lawsuit does not mention access to polling places for the general election. Navajo County, Arizona, is a 9,960-square-mile area of which about 6,500 square miles are reservation land for three different tribes — Navajo Nation, Hopi and Fort Apache. Between the three tribes the county will have eight early voting sites and 20 Election Day voting sites located on reservation land, according to the county recorder’s office.
In response to the Arizona lawsuit, President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign filed a motion stating that extending the ballot return deadline “would sow confusion and delay in the administration of the upcoming General Election and all future elections.” The campaign did not return a request for comment on the lawsuit.
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Question
Use the passage to answer the question.
In one or two sentences, use the information in the text and your background knowledge to predict the outcome of the challenge to the ballot collection deadline.
1 answer