Colorado: An Accurate and Accessible System
October 15, 2026
By Lyza Weisman
The right to vote is self-evident, but this isn’t always the case for members in Native American communities. The Native American Rights Fund estimated in 2024 that one in four eligible Native Americans are registered to vote. The Fund credited the issue to the deep-rooted historic mistreatment of Native Americans in the voting process. In 2024, the Fund recognized Colorado as one of four states with automatic voter registration (AVR), which is incredibly helpful in increasing Native American voter participation.
If the tribal council chooses to participate in the AVR program, they would compile the necessary information for the state, such as name, date of birth, and address, and send it to the state, which would register or preregister individuals and send them a letter if the application was approved or declined.
Colorado has not stopped there; in fact, it prides itself on having the “gold standard” of election systems regarding its accuracy and equality. Last year, Colorado lived up to its reputation when SB25-001 was signed on May 12, 2025. This bill helped many communities, including the tribal community. For tribal community members, the new law effectively made it easier to vote. For example, SB25-001 allows tribal identification cards not containing a photograph to be sufficient for voter registration if the ID contains a Colorado address. Additionally, upon request, a county drop box location is required to be placed within a reservation.
These changes began in 2019 when the Colorado government took initiative to make voting accessible for members in the tribal communities. Tribal members have been allowed to vote since 1970. However, many geographical barriers contributed to diminished tribal voter participation, including hours of travel required to reach a polling center and the fact that a tribal ID card was insufficient for voter registration given the lack of a photograph. Lorelei Cloud wrote about how even after she turned 18, she didn’t vote since she couldn’t access a polling office and politicians often disregarded the native lands while on their campaign.
Tribal members also have access, as residents of Colorado, to other Colorado voter access initiatives. A key feature of the Colorado voter system – strengthened by SB25-001 – is mail ballot delivery, in which every registered voter receives a ballot by mail.
Moving into this next election cycle, Colorado is still working to improve its election results’ validity. On June 2, 2026, House Bill SB26-1113 was signed into law. The law intends to further strengthen the election systems in ways that will also advantage Colorado’s tribal communities. Ballots will now arrive to Coloradans sooner, and drop boxes will be available earlier. Additionally, if an election emergency should occur, the bill grants more flexibility to the state to administer elections, especially in the event of federal government action or interference. Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold has commended the new law’s efforts to protect the system against interference from the federal government and current administration regarding elections.
Voters can choose to participate by mailing their ballot, dropping their ballot at a 24-hour drop box (which, thanks to SB25-001, can be found on the reservation), or voting in person. There are also paper ballots, as well as a pre- and post-election testing audit to ensure validity.
Colorado is transparent about its voting system regarding when and how ballots are counted. Colorado wants the system to work and be fair, ensuring all eligible voters to have access, including tribal communities. Colorado is taking steps and passing laws to ensure the system works. Many organizations – from the League of Women Voters to the ACLU and the Native American Rights Fund – as well as other state governments have been looking at Colorado’s efforts in its election system as a model for improving and increasing tribal voter turnout. The native community in Colorado has been commending the efforts in the blog posts attached here; however, there is little evidence yet to show how voter turnout will improve in the native population until the next election.