Judy: Ahead of election day,
many groups face challenges
voting, whether early or at the
voting booth.
For some native American
communities, it's being able to
read and understand the voting
process and ballots.
From the Cronkite school of
journalism in Phoenix, alexia
stanbridge explains.
>> Maxine Wadsworth is a
translator for navajo county
elections which covers many
parts of both the navajo and
hopi nation in northern Arizona.
Her job is to translate voting
information into the hopi
language.
Many indeginous languages
emphasize oral not written
communications.
So Wadsworth and her team
translate election materials,
recording audio files that
voters can listen to when they
vote.
>> The screen is now on.
Alexia: These translations allow
indegenous voters to fully
participate in a process that
may determine their future.
>> It is important for elections
to have an interpreter or a
translator to help the people
understand what their options
are in voting, and to have the
proper tools to assist them in
making the right choices.
Alexia: It's crunch time.
The election is just a few days
away.
The team on the hopi nation
spends hours translating voting
instructions and ballots.
In many cases they have to call
election offices for
clarification, seeking meanings
behind words.
>> It makes it very challenging
when you're asked to interpret a
document, which generally has no
place in hopi language at all.
Alexia: Wardsworth says in the
hopi language there arena™™t
-- are not single terms for
certain government roles.
>> The governor --
alexia: Other election officials
like rosita Kelly works for the
navajo elections administration.
She says it is not as simple as
a word for word translation.
>> It would take certain, maybe
two or three sentences in navajo
to describe a word.
Alexia: Tribal nations cover
over a quarter of Arizona land
with vast distances between many
communities and voting
locations.
On the tohono o'odham nation,
the eleven polling places are
spread across an area almost the
size of Connecticut.
There are 22 tribal nations in
Arizona.
Ballots are translated into just
three languages, hopi, apache,
and navajo, by the certain
counties where the tribes meet
guidelines under the voting
rights act for English
proficiency within their
populations.
The tohono o'odham nation is one
of the many tribes whose ballots
are not translated.
Tribal member verlon Jose says
that puts the older members of
his tribe at a disadvantage.
>> It would impact everyone.
Mainly the elders, mainly the
people that live in communities
that are remote, who are still
very fluent.
And it's what they speak every
day.
Alexia: Jose says translations
would have additional benefits.
>> I believe that would help
increase the voter turnout,
because people will more
understand what is actually on
the ballot.
>> What does this proposition
mean?
What is tax mean?
What does you know, different?
Whatever the propositions are.
Alexia: Hopi tribal registrar
Karen shupla says ballot
propositions, whose descriptions
in voter guides can be pages
long, can be confusing in any
language.
One resource election workers
offer is in-person translations
at polling centers, while making
sure not to coach tribal members
on whom to vote for.
>> It also helps them to
explain, like, don't be afraid
they can translate for you, and
they'll help you understand the
propositions.
Alexia: The goal, says Maxine
Wadsworth of navajo county
elections, is not just to make
it easier for tribal members to
participate in the electoral
process.
It is to give them voice and
power.
Alexia: Is -- it is necessary to
inform give the voters and
opportunity for information that
could help them make the choices
that they would like to making
an informed decision for
themselves, and the things that
they believe in.
Alexia: For the pbs newshour,
I'm alexia stanbridge with
Cronkite news on the hopi
nation.
Judy: Be sure to join us
tomorrow with a house -- with
her speaker Nancy Pelosi we
prepare for the results to come
in.
It all begins on the newshour.
We will follow with our special
coverage throughout the night
here on pbs.
Plus you can join us online all
afternoon tomorrow with
additional analysis at