Perry Bellegarde, AFN chief, urges people to vote, even if he doesn't

Assembly of First Nations National Chief Perry Bellegarde isurgingaboriginal peopleto go to the ballot box this October, arguing they could wield great influence in the electoral outcome.

Butthatmessage seemed to be undercut by his admission Wednesday that he did not cast a vote in the last election and was uncertain whether he would in this election.

Bellegardereasonedthatas someone who has beenelected intoFirst Nations leadership positions, he shouldremain non-partisan, even when it comes to voting in asecret ballot. But after repeated questions from reporters, Bellegardesaid he might reconsider that position.

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The national chief unveiled his group's priorities for theelection at theNational Press Theatre in Ottawa,including afocus on closing the gap in the standard of living between First Nations people and other Canadians.

Bellegardesuggested various ways to address the inequality:

• Strengthening First Nations, families and communitiesthroughkey investments in education, training and child care on reserves.
• Holding an inquiry into missing and murdered aboriginal women.
• Equitable funding, particularly removing thetwo per cent capon annual funding increases for reserve programs and services.
• Developing aplan from the recommendations of theTruth and Reconciliation commission report.

But Bellegarde acknowledged that to achieve thesegoals andto get politicians to address their concerns, First Nationsvoter turnout needs to improve.

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Fifty-one ridings across Canada have been identified by the AFN as potential swing ridings where, according to Bellegarde,the outcome could be determined by the turnout ofaboriginal voters. Or, more importantly, the turnout could determine whether a minority or majority government is elected.

Aboriginal vote historically low

But to achieve the influence that Bellegarde envisions, First Nations voter turnoutwould have to substantially increase.Historically, the aboriginal vote has been difficult to mobilize, with low voter turnout on reserves in particular.

In 2011, the only place where the on-reserve voter turnout approached the nationallevel (61 per cent)was the Yukon riding, where 57 per cent of the on-reserve voters casta ballot. While many regions saw on-reserve voter turnout percentages in the high 40s, in Quebec it was as low as 28 per cent, according to a list provided by the AFN.

Democratic participation among aboriginal voters is further complicated by a beliefheld by some that, because they consider the First Nationssovereign, the federal government of Canadadoes not speak for them.

Bellegarde said he respected that belief, but for others not restricted by such convictions, the AFNneedsto do a better job of encouraging people to get to the ballot box by raising awareness.

Some First Nations are holdingidentification clinicsto help their members get what they need to vote. Bellegarde said the AFN isencouraging First Nations chiefs to partner up withElections Canada, whichhas given $475,000 to theAFN to help inform aboriginal voters about their right to voteand explain how to do it.

In 2015, new voter eligibility rules are in place that the AFN sayscould make it more difficult to cast ballots. Aboriginal voters may not have the documents required to meet the new identification requirements at polling stations.

Still, Bellegarde remained optimistic that voter turnout will improve,saying that First Nations"can and will be a major factor in this election."

Non-partisan, chief says

He refused to endorseany party, saying he'sstrictly non-partisan and hopesto hear feedback from all the parties on the AFN priorities.

But when asked toratehisorganization's relationship with the Harper government on a scale of one to 10, he said itwould receivea low number.

"It needs work," he said, when asked by CBC's Julie Van Dusenhow he'd rate the relationship. "It's obviously not a 10 and it's not a one. It would be low."

Bellegarde saidhe would be "hard pressed" to find one thing he was happy with thatcamefrom Harper's government in the past five years.

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All the major federal parties are running candidates who areFirst Nations, Mtis or Inuit. The numbers of those nominated so far are:

• New Democrats: 23
• Liberals: 16
• Conservatives: 3
• Greens: 7

Aboriginal issues have been receiving some attention from the party leaders. On Wednesday, NDP Leader Tom Mulcair, who has already pledged thathis government would create a cabinet-level committee devoted to the issues, said he had spoken with Bellegarde."We really are on the same wavelength about a lot of things," Mulcair said.

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AFN National Chief Perry Bellegarde discusses missing and murdered aboriginal women

Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau has said his government would drop the two per cent funding increase cap (introducedby the Liberals) and revive the Kelowna accord, anagreement negotiated by formerprime minister Paul Martin to pour $5 billion into educationand social welfare programs for aboriginal people. It was scrapped when Harper came to power.

On Wednesday, he tweeted that hesupports Bellegarde's plan to "close the gapand restore a true nation-to-nation relationship with First Nations."

In a statement, the Harper campaign made no mention of Bellegarde's plan, instead sayingit believes "increasing aboriginal participation in the economy is the most effective way to improve the well-being and quality of life of aboriginal people in Canada."

It listed a number of investments the Conservative governmenthad made, which includes $11 billion in funding each year to First Nations.