2020 contender Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) told a forum of Native American voters in Iowa Monday that she's "sorry" for harm she's caused the community.
Between the lines: According the Des Moines Register's Ledyard King and Shelby Fleig, 2020 Democrats are heavily courting Native American voters in swing states like Michigan, Wisconsin, Arizona and North Carolina.
The big picture: Warren has drawn backlash in recent years for overselling her Native American ancestry. As a senator, Warren claimed that Cherokee ancestry was a recurring point in her family's stories and that she was "proud" of the relation, but many questioned the claim.
- A DNA test later showed Warren to be between 1/32 and 1/1,024 Native American, with "strong evidence" indicating she had a Native American ancestor 6–10 generations ago.
The heritage claim had become a point of jeering for President Trump, who nicknamed her "Pocahontas" and claimed she had used a false minority status to get her former teaching role at Harvard Law School.
- In a 1996 letter responding to criticism of a lack of minority women at the university, Harvard did dub Warren as Native American.
- Warren also claimed minority status in 1986 when registering for the Texas State Bar Association.
- There is no indication that the claim ever had an influence on Warren’s employment, per a Boston Globe investigation last year.
Of note: According to reporting from The Intercept's Ryan Grim, Warren had already apologized privately to Cherokee leadership.
Go deeper: Elizabeth Warren on the issues, in under 500 words
