QUARTERLY DISPATCH | March 2024

We've rounded up the latest news about voter ID laws and VoteRiders' work — including a story of helping someone track down a 50-year-old marriage license in order to get an ID.

Thanks for being so supportive of our work and American democracy!

–Team VoteRiders

VoteRiders is Making a Difference

📈 New Report Confirms Millions of Americans Lack ID Ahead of 2024 Elections >> [link removed]
In February, VoteRiders released our latest research results from a multiphase national study conducted in partnership with the University of Maryland’s Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement (CDCE), the Brennan Center for Justice, and Public Wise. The study provides the public with crucial information on voter ID — which had not been updated in nearly 20 years. The latest phase of the research examines not just who in America lacks ID, but also why , and also examines the extent to which Americans are aware of their state’s voter ID laws. Learn more ➡️ [link removed]

🤝 Empowering Voters Ahead of November Elections >> [link removed]
“When I signed up to volunteer with VoteRiders, I never imagined what an amazing experience it was going to be,“ writes full-time VoteRiders Voter ID Assistance Volunteer Shelly Bromberg. Learn more ➡️ [link removed]

VoteRiders on the Ground

Here are just a few of the impactful ways our dedicated field team collaborated with our ever-growing community of partner organizations this quarter to make sure voters have the ID information and and free help they need to make their voices heard.

🌵 ARIZONA:VoteRiders’ Arizona Coordinator traveled from sunny Phoenix to snow-packed Flagstaff to make sure Northern Arizona University students have the IDs they need to vote on Election Day. >> [link removed]

🍑 GEORGIA: VoteRiders celebrated Black History Month alongside our Peach State partners at a mural honoring Black American leaders, including Civil War hero, abolitionist, and former US Representative Robert Smalls. We also partnered with Fair Count to launch a year-long letter-writing campaign targeting registered Georgia voters who lack an ID on file with the state. >> [link removed]

🎓 TEXAS: VoteRiders’ Texas Team partnered with Texas Rising RGV and Campus Vote Project to help Texans register to vote and make sure they know what kind of ID they need to vote in upcoming elections. >> [link removed]

VoteRiders in the News

Democracy Docket : New Research Ahead of 2024 Confirms Voter ID Laws Impact Millions >> [link removed]>>
NC Newsline : Helping People with Disabilities in NC Obtain IDs for Voting >> [link removed]
USA TODAY: In North Carolina, Vote Will Be a Test of New Faith, Tighter Election Laws — And of Voters’ Faith >> [link removed]]
Courthouse News Service: Federal Judge Mostly Upholds Arizona Proof-of-Citizenship Voting Laws >> [link removed]
CityBeat Guest Commentary: VoteRiders Helps Ohioans Receive the Proper Identification to Vote >> [link removed]

Voter ID Laws Across America

FLORIDA: Florida's New Driver's License Rule Is Blatant Trans Voter Suppression >> [link removed] / The New Republic
Florida recently announced that it will no longer honor Floridians’ requests to amend the gender marker on their driver’s licenses. More than 600,000 Floridians have already updated the gender marker on their license, and these trans voters will now be prohibited from renewing their driver’s license with their accurate gender marker. Some may decide not to vote rather than have to show an inaccurate license to polling place workers and risk facing intimidation, discrimination, or harassment if their ID doesn’t reflect their gender presentation.

NEBRASKA: Secretary of State's Office Sending Letters to Voters Who Might Not Have Photo ID for Voting >> [link removed] / The Alliance Times-Herald
A new photo ID law goes into effect in Nebraska for the first time for the statewide primary in May. Approximately 35,000 registered voters in Nebraska do not have an ID issued by the Nebraska DMV. Note: VoteRiders has already filed an open record request for this list of voters so we can reach out to them and offer them voter ID help.

NORTH CAROLINA: Voter ID Led to Confusion During NC Municipal Elections, Report Says >> [link removed] / Carolina Public Press
After years of litigation, the North Carolina photo ID law was reinstated last year and was in effect for the first time for the fall 2023 municipal elections. Confusion and misinterpretation of the law by election officials resulted in inconsistent application of the law across the state. Poll workers failed to offer ID exception forms to some eligible voters, while others had their ballots incorrectly rejected by county boards of elections for ID reasons.

OHIO: Voting, Disability Rights Advocates Claim Ohio Photo Voter ID Law Violates Federal Disabilities Law >> [link removed] / Ohio Capital Journal
In addition to instituting one of the country’s strictest photo ID laws for in-person voting last year, Ohio’s House Bill 458 also severely limits the list of individuals authorized to return absentee ballots on behalf of someone else. By removing caregivers and other non-family members, this limitation particularly impacts disabled and elderly voters, who are significantly more likely to need to vote by mail, especially in light of the new in-person photo ID requirement. This provision is now subject to a lawsuit claiming it violates the Americans with Disabilities Act by imposing “extreme burdens to vote that voters without disabilities will never face.”

TEXAS: Voting Rights Advocates Decry Program That Cost 600,000 Texans Their Driver's Licenses >> [link removed] / Dallas Observer
At least 600,000 drivers in Texas have had their licenses suspended under a state program that targets unpaid tickets. Most voters are unaware that an expired or suspended license can still be used as an ID to vote. This confusion is likely to result in significant numbers of Texans believing they don’t have an acceptable ID to cast a ballot.

Voter Story

When Linda was told she couldn’t get an Indiana state ID until she submitted multiple marriage licenses and divorce decrees — one dating back fifty years — she was floored.
Like so many other Americans who change their name, Linda found herself taking on the role of a detective, stuck in a maze of bureaucracy and paperwork as she attempted to track down a paper trail of documents to prove how her last name had become “Dickerson.”

“I can’t vote in Indiana without a photo ID,” Linda explained. “I also don’t go anywhere — I’m in a wheelchair, I’m homebound. I don’t have the money to pay for these documents, so Indiana’s voter ID law is disenfranchising people who are not only female but who are also disabled and don’t have the money. It’s so discriminatory. Voting is very important, especially right now, because we’re coming up on a big election. It’s your civic duty. You’ve got a voice, and you’ve got to get out there and vote."

One day, Linda was scrolling through social media when she came across a video [[link removed]] on TikTok that mentioned how VoteRiders could help folks obtain underlying documents needed to secure ID.

Read Linda's story and learn how VoteRiders got her the ID she needed to exercise her freedom to vote ➡️ [link removed]

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