Midterm Elections – A Record Number of Native Americans Running for Office

The midterm elections are less than two weeks away, and many voters will soon be casting their votes in what will likely be a historic election. For the first time in history, a Native American woman is likely to be elected to the federal legislature.

There are currently four Native American candidates leading in national polls. There are two congressional incumbents – Representatives Tom Cole and Markwayne Mullin – running for reelection in Oklahoma, and two women – Sharice Davids and Deb Haaland – running for Congressional seats in Kansas and New Mexico, respectively.

All poll numbers are taken from FiveThirtyEight, a website that focuses on poll analysis.

• Representative Tom Cole – a member of Chickasaw Nation, and an incumbent congressman running for reelection in Oklahoma’s 4th Congressional District. FiveThirtyEight gives him a 99.9 percent chance of winning. Rep. Cole is a member of the following committees:  Appropriations Committee, Budget Committee, and Rules Committee.
• Sharice Davids – a member of Ho-Chunk Nation, and a congressional candidate running for Kansas’ 3rd Congressional District. FiveThirtyEight gives her a 78.7 percent chance of winning.
• Deb Haaland – a member of Pueblo of Laguna, and a congressional candidate running for New Mexico’s 1st Congressional District. FiveThirtyEight gives her a 98.2 percent chance of winning.
• Representative Markwayne Mullin – a member of Cherokee Nation, and an incumbent congressman running for reelection in Oklahoma’s 2nd Congressional District. FiveThirtyEight gives him a 99.8 percent chance of winning. Rep. Mullin is a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee.

Outside of the federal legislature, there is a record number of Native American candidates running for political offices in 2018. For perspective, more Native American candidates are running for lieutenant governor this year than the total the number of candidates running for statewide offices in 2016.