Native leaders standing up for their community

Historical, legal, and contemporary factors affect the level and depth of engagement of Native Americans, especially Native women, in the political system, contributing to drastic underrepresentation of Indigenous peoples as elected leaders at every level of government. Despite purposeful disenfranchisement of Native people from political participation, we continue to see Native leaders run for office, get elected, and make meaningful change for communities throughout the United States.

This report provides an overview of how much we have accomplished as a community in terms of increasing Native representation, and how far we have to go, with variance across states, regions, positions, and types of political institutions. We profile 18 Native leaders across all levels and branches of government, exploring the meaningful policy changes they have advanced for their communities.

When I was growing up, we really didn’t see people who looked like us, we certainly didn’t see women in these positions, and I want every Alaskan to know that whatever job it is they’re interested in, it’s possible.

– Valerie Davidson (Yup’ik), former Lieutenant Governor of Alaska

Key takeaways

The report highlights the successes of Native political leaders who are representing Tribal interests and fighting for sovereignty within the U.S. political system. We found a substantive effect on sovereignty-related policies when more Native people are appointed or elected into the U.S. government. Native women in particular have stepped up to run, and are successful advocates in this space. However, the judicial branch at both the federal and state levels has the furthest to go in terms of descriptive parity.

Representation at a glance

Since 1993, there have been 199 legislators who have identified as Native American, Alaska Native, or Native Hawaiian. In 2023, 80 Native legislators representing 51 Tribes or Native communities were serving across 22 states.

In August 2024, Advance Native Political Leadership, in partnership with ICT, identified 238 Native leaders serving across the U.S. at the city, town, and county levels. These Native leaders represent 87 different Tribal Nations, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian communities across 26 states.

To date, 11 Native judges have served on a federal bench, and no Native people have ever been nominated to the Supreme Court. To put that in perspective, there are over 800 judges who serve throughout the federal courts each year.

Publish Date: April 2025