The relationship between the tribes and the United States is one of a government to a government. This principle has shaped the entire history of dealings between the federal government and the tribes, and is lodged in the Constitution of the United States. American Indians and Alaska Natives have the same right to vote as all United States citizens. American Indians and Alaska Natives vote in state and local elections, as well as in tribal elections. No single federal or tribal criterion establishes a person's identity as an Indian.
Government agencies use differing criteria to determine eligibility for programs and services.
Tribes also have varying eligibility criteria for membership. The protections and services provided by the United States for tribal members flow not from an individual's status as an American Indian in an ethnological sense, but because the person is a member of a tribe recognized by the United States, and with which the United States has a special trust relationship. This special trust relationship entails certain legally enforceable obligations and responsibilities. American Indians and Alaska Natives have the same rights as all citizens to hold public office. In this century, American Indian and Alaska Native men and women have held elected and appointed offices at all levels of state, local, and federal government.