It's been four years since Slade Gorton was voted out of office but he is still the rallying cry for the power of Native votes.

"Slade Gorton really is a mobilizer; his name resonates anywhere in Indian Country," Jamestown S'Klallam chairman Ron Allen told The Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

Allen and other Washington tribal leaders formed the First American Education Project in 1999 to educate voters about issues important to Native Americans. The group took out television ads against Gorton, who lost the U.S. Senate race in 2000 to Maria Cantwell, a Democrat.

This year, tribal leaders are hoping to turn out 1 million Native voters. Key states include New Mexico, South Dakota, Montana, Oklahoma, Arizona, Washington and Alaska.

Get the Story:
Tribes flex growing muscle at ballot box (The Seattle Post-Intelligencer 3/9)

Relevant Links:
First American Education Project - http://www.first-americans.net

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