Overview:
Four Directions Native Vote – Indian Country will host three days of nonpartisan civic engagement programming September 20-22 at the Minneapolis American Indian Center. The Indian Country Election Forums and Democracy Academy will bring Native voters, community leaders and candidates together for voter education, candidate forums, community discussions and organizing training ahead of Minnesota’s November 3 general election.
Native Vote 2026
Four Directions Native Vote – Indian Country (4DNV-IC) will convene the Indian Country Election Forums September 20-22 at the Minneapolis American Indian Center, bringing together candidates, Native community leaders, organizers and voters for three days of nonpartisan candidate forums, community panels and civic engagement training.
The event comes six weeks before Minnesota’s November 3 general election. The Minnesota Secretary of State lists the U.S. Senate, U.S. House, governor and lieutenant governor, secretary of state, state auditor and attorney general among the offices on the 2026 general election ballot.
The Forums are being organized around the importance of Native participation in Minnesota elections, particularly in races that can be decided by relatively small margins.
In Minnesota’s closely contested 2008 U.S. Senate election, Democrat Al Franken ultimately prevailed over Republican incumbent Norm Coleman by 312 votes after a recount and election contest. The final totals were 1,212,629 votes for Franken and 1,212,317 for Coleman.
Minnesota is home to 11 federally recognized Tribal Nations, a relationship the state formally recognizes as involving tribal self-governance and self-determination.
A Partnership Rooted in Community
The Forums will be hosted in partnership with the Minneapolis American Indian Center and in collaboration with Minnesota’s 11 federally recognized Tribal Nations, including seven Anishinaabe nations and four Dakota communities.
“Our people have always understood the importance of having a voice in the decisions that affect our communities. As leaders, we have a responsibility to make sure our people are heard and that the issues important to Indian Country are understood. These forums are an opportunity to come together, listen, ask questions and make sure our voices continue to be part of the conversation for our children and future generations.”
— Chairman Michael Fairbanks, White Earth Nation
Minneapolis also carries particular significance in Native history. The city was the birthplace of the American Indian Movement in 1968 and remains home to a longstanding urban American Indian community.
Holding the Forums at the Minneapolis American Indian Center on Franklin Avenue places the gathering within that broader history of Native community organizing and civic engagement.
Focus on Native Voter Participation
4DNV-IC says the Forums will address barriers that have historically affected Native voter participation, including voter registration, access to polling places, mail voting and voter education.
The event will also focus on the use of census and voting data to help Native communities better understand their communities and develop voter-mobilization strategies.
A central component of the three-day program will be a “From Data to Action: A Community Asset Mapping Workshop,” led by Dr. Jeanine Abrams McLean, president of Fair Count, the civic engagement organization founded by Stacey Abrams.
Participants will develop a “Democracy Snapshot” of their communities using census and voting-equity data and develop an action plan based on what they learn.
Three Days, Three Purposes
Sunday, September 20: Democracy Academy
The opening day will focus on civic training for organizers and community members.
Sessions will cover the current political environment, mail ballots, the census, voter registration in Minnesota, voter mobilization and get-out-the-vote strategies.
The Democracy Academy is designed as a working session, with participants receiving information and tools they can use in their own communities leading up to the November election.
Monday, September 21, and Tuesday, September 22: Election Forums
The following two days will feature candidate forums involving candidates for statewide and federal offices, along with community panels addressing issues affecting Indian Country in Minnesota.
Each day will begin with an invocation from a local drum group and a color guard.
A Know Your Rights session will provide information about voters’ rights at polling places and what voters can do if their eligibility or right to vote is challenged.
Community and resource tables also will be available throughout the Forums. Participating organizations include the Minnesota Indian Women’s Resource Center, NDN Collective and other partner organizations. On-site voter registration will also be available.
Candidates Invited to Participate
4DNV-IC says it has invited all legally qualified candidates for the offices represented at the Forums. Participation is being confirmed on a rolling basis.
Among the candidates listed by organizers are:
Minnesota Governor
- Republican: Lisa Demuth
- Democratic-Farmer-Labor: Amy Klobuchar
U.S. Senate
- Republican: Michele Tafoya
- Democratic-Farmer-Labor: Peggy Flanagan
Lieutenant Governor
- Republican: Ryan Wilson
- Democratic-Farmer-Labor: Ben Schierer
Secretary of State
- Republican: Tad Jude
- Democratic-Farmer-Labor: Steve Simon
State Auditor
- Republican: Scott Jensen
- Democratic-Farmer-Labor: Zack Filipovich
Attorney General
- Republican: Ron Schultz
- Democratic-Farmer-Labor: Keith Ellison
The organizers also list invited candidates for Minnesota’s eight congressional districts.
Minnesota Secretary of State records confirm that the 2026 general election is scheduled for November 3 and provide the state’s official candidate filing information.
Native Community Leaders to Participate
Ruth Buffalo, CEO of the Minnesota Indian Women’s Resource Center, has also been invited to participate in the Forums.
Buffalo is an enrolled citizen of the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation and a former member of the North Dakota House of Representatives. She leads an organization that has provided safety, shelter and services to American Indian and Alaska Native women and families since 1984.
She has also been an advocate on issues involving Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives and the safety and well-being of survivors of trafficking and domestic violence.
Free and Open to the Public
The Indian Country Election Forums and Democracy Academy are free and open to the public, with both in-person and virtual participation available.
Because seating at the Minneapolis American Indian Center is limited, registration is required.
What: Indian Country Election Forums and Democracy Academy
When: Sunday, September 20–Tuesday, September 22, 2026
Where: Minneapolis American Indian Center, 1530 East Franklin Avenue, Minneapolis
Virtual: Livestream registration available through 4DNV-Indian Country
Cost: Free; registration required
Members of the media are welcome throughout all three days. A color guard, drum group and Minnesota Tribal Nations flags will be featured Monday and Tuesday mornings, with interviews available upon request.
A Nonpartisan Event
Four Directions Native Vote – Indian Country is a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. The organization says the Indian Country Election Forums are strictly nonpartisan educational events.
According to 4DNV-IC, all legally qualified candidates for each represented office have been invited to participate on equal terms. Questions will address a broad range of issues, and participating candidates will receive equal time and the same format.
The organization does not support or oppose candidates or political parties and does not make contributions to political campaigns. Participation in the Forums does not constitute an endorsement by 4DNV-IC, the Minneapolis American Indian Center or its partner organizations.
The Forums are intended to provide Minnesota Native voters with an opportunity to hear directly from candidates, ask questions about issues affecting Indian Country and obtain information about participating in the November 3 election.
