Indians finding a voice in San Juan

American Indians' political influence is growing nationwide, according to a book published in May by two University of Utah professors and a research associate, but Forrest Cuch, director of Utah Indian Affairs, said the group still holds little sway in Utah.

With a population that makes up only 1.3 percent of Utahns, Cuch sees little possibility for American Indians, who only gained the right to vote in Utah 50 years ago, to cast enough votes to make a significant impact on election outcomes. He described Utah American Indians' political force in a word — powerless.

"I've always hoped that the Indian population would be able to grow and exercise its voting power more," Cuch said, "but we're so small that I think the greater impact is probably going to come from Hispanics. And I hate to say that my people do not have enough impact."

Dan McCool, a political science professor at the U. and director of the university's American West Center and the environmental studies program, agreed with Cuch.

McCool is one of the authors of the book "Native Vote: The Voting Rights Act, and the Right to Vote," which charts legal victories to enfranchise American Indians under the Voting Rights Act.

"American Indians in Utah are not significant players in statewide elections for two reasons: One, they are few in number and, two, they tend to vote Democrat, but most elections in Utah are dominated by Republicans," McCool said in an e-mail.

The book said the American Indian vote has increasingly become a factor in elections, saying the group's vote was crucial to Al Gore winning New Mexico during the 2000 presidential elections and that it helped decide the wins for South Dakota Sen. Tim Johnson and Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano.

"Small groups of minority voters, such as Indians, can play a deciding role in very close elections, but that seldom happens in Utah," McCool said. "The real impact of Indian voting in Utah is at the local level."

One Utah county knows how that works.

Kenneth Maryboy has to balance his role as a Navajo leader with duties as a San Juan County commissioner, taking office in January. His brother, Mark Maryboy , made history when he was elected in 1986 as the first American Indian county commissioner, also in San Juan, in Utah's history. The county has had one Navajo county commissioner ever since.

The other two commissioners say having a Navajo voice has helped guide decisions in a county that contains the Utah portion of the Navajo Indian Reservation and has a population that is more than half American Indians.