Masto, Rosen question voting access for tribal members

Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto and Rep. Jacky Rosen have joined forces to ask federal officials to reduce barriers to voting by American Indians.

The letter to Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the Office of Tribal Justice Director Tracy Toulou comes in the wake of a lawsuit against the Nevada Secretary of State’s office that resulted in a court order to provide voting locations for certain tribes.

In their letter, they said tribal communities face barriers in exercising the right to vote including the lack of places to register, lack of access to early voting sites and having to travel extensive distances to reach voting sites.

That 2016 lawsuit resulted in a court order that the state provide early voting and election day voting locations for the Pyramid Lake Paiute and Walker River Paiute tribes.

In their letter, the two Democrats asked if the Justice Department has followed up to make sure that settlement agreement is being fully implemented and whether Justice has taken steps to ensure that other Nevada tribes are being provided with adequate voting access.

Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske was copied on the letter.