The Our Homes, Our Votes campaign is NLIHC’s nonpartisan initiative to boost voter turnout among low-income renters and elevate housing as an election issue. This biweekly article in Memo provides news, resources, and other updates at the intersection of housing justice and nonpartisan civic engagement. To learn more about Our Homes, Our Votes, visit www.ourhomes-ourvotes.org.
Department of Justice Updates Voting Rights Resources
The Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) published two new informational voting rights guides for voters and election officials on www.justice.gov/voting. One new guide, “Voter Intimidation Under Federal Law,” explains the federal prohibitions on threats, obstruction, and deliberately false information about elections that prevent people from participating in the electoral process. The second resource, “Voting Protections for Language Minority Citizens under Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act,” describes the federal mandate for language assistance to make the electoral process accessible to voters with limited English proficiency. The DOJ also updated five existing voting rights guides, including a guide on the “Americans with Disabilities Act” (ADA) and other legal protections that safeguard equal access to electoral participation for voters with disabilities.
For more information, visit: www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-launches-updated-voting-rights-and-elections-website
New Research Illustrates Experiences of Voters with Disabilities over Time
A new report to the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) from researchers at Rutgers University’s Program for Disability Research highlights the perspectives of voters with disabilities since the passage of the “Help America Vote Act” (HAVA) in 2002. The report draws on national survey research and the experiences that 44 voters with disabilities shared in a series of focus groups. The report finds that the voter turnout gap between people with disabilities and people without disabilities shrank by 5.5 percentage points between 2000 and 2002, in large part because of accessibility improvements in polling places and the expansion of mail-in voting options. Despite these gains, voters with disabilities were more than three times likelier than voters without disabilities to face voting difficulties in the 2022 elections. The report concludes with recommendations for election officials to improve the implementation of HAVA and pursue further reforms to make voting more accessible.
To read the full report, visit: www.eac.gov/sites/default/files/2024-04/EAC_2024_Rutgers_Report_PDF.pdf
All Voting is Local Highlights the High Cost of Voter Suppression
All Voting is Local, a nonpartisan organization that exposes and challenges discriminatory barriers to voting, released a report on the cost of voter suppression laws that target voters of color, voters with disabilities, and older and younger voters. The report finds that the average cost of voting is $105.53 for a first-time voter, resulting from a combination of the fees and lost wages that it takes to register to vote or update a voter registration, travel and spend time at a licensing office, pay for an ID card, and cast a ballot. More than half of eligible adult citizens have faced obstacles to voting due to a missed voter registration deadline, inability to find their polling location, undelivered or lost election mail, or being turned away from their polling place. The report found that these issues affect 63% of eligible voters with disabilities, 59% of limited English speakers, 69% of eligible Hispanic voters, 65% of eligible Black voters, and 71% of young voters (ages 18-29).
To read the full report, visit: allvotingislocal.org/wp-content/uploads/All-Voting-Report_-The-Cost-of-Voter-Suppression-APRIL-2024.pdf
Join Protecting Immigrant Families (PIF) Webinar on Nonpartisan Advocacy during Election Season
The Protecting Immigrant Families (PIF) coalition, of which NLIHC is a member, will host a webinar, “Nonpartisan Advocacy: How 501(c)(3)s Can Educate and Advocate During Election Season,” on Friday, May 17, from 1 to 2:30 pm ET. Experts from the Alliance for Justice’s Bolder Advocacy campaign will discuss how nonprofits can safely engage in nonpartisan advocacy during an election year. The webinar will address how to advocate for your issues throughout election season, educate the public through nonpartisan candidate forums and questionnaires, objectively respond to candidate statements, ensure that voter registration and get-out-the-vote efforts remain nonpartisan, safely support or oppose ballot measures, and other related topics. Register for the webinar here.
To learn more about Bolder Advocacy, visit: https://bolderadvocacy.org/
To learn more about PIF, visit: https://pifcoalition.org/
Become a National Voter Registration Day Community Partner!
National Voter Registration Day (NVRD) is a nonpartisan civic holiday that activates nonprofits, campuses, businesses, and other organizations to register voters in their communities. The holiday reaches tens of thousands of voters each year and has registered more than 5 million voters to date since its launch in 2012. NVRD will take place this year on Tuesday, September 17. Sign up to become an NVRD Community Partner to receive complimentary posters and stickers, digital assets, and updates about NVRD events and grant opportunities.
Community partners agree to remain nonpartisan in all promotion of the event and voter registration activities. Click here for the community partner signup form.