Navajo voters hop tractors, make extraordinary efforts to vote after widespread flooding

Four weeks of flooding washed out roads and sent thousands fleeing their homes on the Navajo Reservation. But many worked hard to get to polling places and voting day became part of the recovery process.

<img src='https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/4032x3024+0+0/resize/4032x3024!/quality/85/format/webp/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F7b%2Fbb%2F1e62ebf34e279595395683841c07%2Flilien-begay-92-with-daughters-clockwise-berneice-darlene-vera-sitting.jpg' alt='Lilien Begay, 92, seated at left with daughters (clockwise) Berneice, Darlene, and Vera at the voting site in Denehotso, Arizona on Nov. 3, 2026'/><p>Four weeks of flooding washed out roads and sent thousands fleeing their homes on the Navajo Reservation. But many worked hard to get to polling places and voting day became part of the recovery process. </p><p>(Image credit: Adam Burke)</p><img src='https://media.npr.org/include/images/tracking/npr-rss-pixel.png?story=nx-s1-6023272' />