South Dakota Amendment C 2006

[CountyTy90]

So I was browsing through some South Dakota data when I came across an amendment in South Dakota that I'd never seen before, Amendment C in the 2006 election.

This is what the amendment would add to the state constitution:

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Here are the results:



Needless to say I was quite shocked. This is a very small margin for a Plains and deep red (Atlas blue) state. Especially in 2006! It's also interesting to see the geographic distribution of the results like Sioux Falls voting for the amendment while Pierre (much more conservative) voting against it.

Anyone else surprised by this?

[Miles]

As far as the Native American vote goes, there was a similar result in NC. Robeson County, home of the Lumbee, was one of the most pro-Amendment 1 counties.

[Alcon]

Look again, Miles.  In South Dakota, the Native American counties were among the most pro-gay.  Shannon County (Pine Ridge) was 65% against the gay marriage ban, second only to Clay County, which has the University of South Dakota.  That just makes it more puzzling why Robeson County was so anti-gay.  I really and truly just don't get the voting patterns with Native Americans on this issue.

In other states, Native Americans are more supportive of same-sex marriage than any racial group, as far as I can tell.  Here, even dirt-poor reservation precincts tend to support it.  In 2012, I mathematically guesstimated the Native American vote for same-sex marriage in WA and I think got 55-57% Approved among reservation Indians.  South Dakota Native Americans seem like a fairly similar case -- well more pro-gay than the whites.

It's especially stark when controlling for demographics.  They're noticeably more supportive than whites, blacks, or Hispanics with otherwise identical demographics.  In Eastern Washington, the Indian reservation precincts were pro-gay marriage islands in a massive anti-gay marriage sea.  I'm not sure why.

I'm especially confused about why Washington and South Dakota Natives are so different than North Carolina Natives.

The close result in SD isn't that hard to explain, though: the vote also banned civil unions.  Doing that caused surprisingly close returns in some conservative states, and even a failing ban in Arizona.  A few years later, they put it on the ballot again, this time only banning gay marriage, and it passed handily.

[Miles]

^ Oh darn.

[Alcon]

^ Oh darn.

Yeah, I mean...I don't blame you for seeing it wrong...it makes absolutely no sense to me, either

[Boston Bread]

It's not surprising SD and NC Native Americans are different on this issue, considering that native Americans never had any sort of unified culture. They probably have different beliefs regarding sexuality, although I'm not sure what those differences are. As a whole I would imagine Native Americans are more liberal on same-sex marriage since many tribes legalized it before a majority of Americans supported it. I believe the wording of the SD referendum also made it less popular, considering that a ban on SSM in ND passed by a 3-1 margin.

[Cubby]

My guess is Robeson County is closer to Eastern Oklahoma as far as race goes. Sure they may tell the Census that they're 38% Native American, but I bet there has been a lot of intermarriage with whites through the centuries and they have European (or Southern?) views on sexuality even though they don't say they're white.

It's not like Osage County, Oklahoma, the state's only Indian Reservation, was any less anti-gay than neighboring counties in that state's 2004 referendum.

Exhibit A:

http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2004/pages/results/states/OK/I/01/map.html

[Boston Bread]

Osage county votes R while native-majority counties in SD are usually heavily democratic - so places like Shannon county can be expected to behave significantly differently.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

My guess is Robeson County is closer to Eastern Oklahoma as far as race goes. Sure they may tell the Census that they're 38% Native American, but I bet there has been a lot of intermarriage with whites through the centuries and they have European (or Southern?) views on sexuality even though they don't say they're white.

It's not like Osage County, Oklahoma, the state's only Indian Reservation, was any less anti-gay than neighboring counties in that state's 2004 referendum.

Exhibit A:

http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2004/pages/results/states/OK/I/01/map.html

The Lumbee have intermarried a great deal with both whites and blacks, but similarity with Eastern Oklahoma is more a matter or not being on the Rez and the social, cultural and economic segregation that flows from that.

[Sol]

Generally amendments which ban common-law heterosexual marriages tend to be less popular.

[Alcon]

It's not surprising SD and NC Native Americans are different on this issue, considering that native Americans never had any sort of unified culture. They probably have different beliefs regarding sexuality, although I'm not sure what those differences are. As a whole I would imagine Native Americans are more liberal on same-sex marriage since many tribes legalized it before a majority of Americans supported it. I believe the wording of the SD referendum also made it less popular, considering that a ban on SSM in ND passed by a 3-1 margin.

It's not surprising they're different, but it's a little surprising they're totally inverse.  Although I believe the Lumbee may be heavily Southern Baptist?

My guess is Robeson County is closer to Eastern Oklahoma as far as race goes. Sure they may tell the Census that they're 38% Native American, but I bet there has been a lot of intermarriage with whites through the centuries and they have European (or Southern?) views on sexuality even though they don't say they're white.

It's not like Osage County, Oklahoma, the state's only Indian Reservation, was any less anti-gay than neighboring counties in that state's 2004 referendum.

Exhibit A:

http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2004/pages/results/states/OK/I/01/map.html

That does not explain why the Robeson County vote was even worse than neighboring white counties, though.

Osage County may be an Indian reservation, but it's only 14% Native American.  There's also no part that's majority Native.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

Yes, the Lumbee are largely Baptist.  The Oglala have been historically associated with the Epsicopal and Catholic Churches, with a significant LDS presence.