Friends,

We all know the stakes this November – and the challenges ahead. But often unreported is what regular folks are doing about it every single day – and how collectively we’re scoring wins for voters and democracy.

Just a bit of background:  Georgia law allows any Georgia voter to challenge the voter registration of another voter in their county. (Kind of wild, we know.) Republicans have weaponized this process – they challenged nearly 100,000 voters in five metro-Atlanta counties in 2022, and they’ve been saying for months that they plan to file many more challenges this year.

Last month, we saw one of the first mass challenges filed outside the Metro-Atlanta area, a sign that Republicans are ramping up their anti-voter tactics ahead of November. Among other things, they challenged the registrations of 159 Mercer University students who are living on campus.

Luckily, the Georgia voter protection team was ready. They supported the Democratic board of election members in preparing for the challenge hearing – and at the end of the day, all three sets of challenges were dismissed (most by a unanimous vote, including the Republican board members!).

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Since that win for voters last month, Georgia Governor Kemp has signed a new slate of voter suppression laws that are intended to make it even easier for Republicans to file mass challenges that threaten a voter’s right to vote. And, Republicans are undeterred – they’ve said they plan to move ahead with more voter challenges in the coming months.

Republicans are fighting like every vote matters – because they do.

We can’t afford to sit on the sidelines. That’s why we’re funding five voter protection staff at the Democratic Party of Georgia. 

Will you chip in just $25 today to make this work possible? 

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Join us for a FREE virtual event with Senator Jon Ossoff and Georgia Rep. Stacey Evans

Senator Jon Ossoff will headline a Partners4Democracy and Power the Vote Special Event on battleground Georgia on May 30th. 

It was Senator Ossoff and his colleague Senator Raphael Warnock who narrowly won those two dramatic Senate elections, thanks to record voter turnout and the voter protection work that empowered those voters. 

But Republicans in Georgia have since changed voting laws, critics argue, to depress Democratic turnout. Senator Ossoff knows his state, knows the laws and knows what it’s going to take for Democrats to win in November.

Please REGISTER and join us on Thursday, May 30 at 8:00 PM ET.

* All funds solicited in connection with this event are by Power the Vote, and not by Sen. Jon Ossoff.

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In Other News…

Trump Allies Ramp Up Campaign Targeting Voter Rolls: “A network of right-wing activists and allies of Donald J. Trump is quietly challenging thousands of voter registrations in critical presidential battleground states, an all-but-unnoticed effort that could have an impact in a close or contentious election.” Read more here.

Federal Judge Strikes Down North Carolina Law Criminalizing Felony Voting:  In a win for voters, a federal judge struck down a law that criminalized voting while still on probation or parole for a felony conviction – even if the voter did so by mistake. “The Challenged Statute was enacted with discriminatory intent, has not been cleansed of its discriminatory taint, and continues to disproportionately impact Black voters,” U.S. District Judge Loretta Biggs wrote. Read more here.

Inside the Far-right Plan to use Civil Rights Laws to Disrupt the 2024 Election: LA Times documents election deniers’ plan to coopt federal civil rights laws – which are intended to protect historically disadvantaged voters – and use them to subvert elections. Election deniers “plan to file lawsuits in multiple states alleging voters’ civil rights are violated by errors on the voter rolls. The goal is to prevent states from certifying federal elections in 2024 until substantial changes are made to election processes.” Read more here.

“The Shapeshifting Threat of Election Interference”:  Voting Rights Lab has released a new report on how “election integrity” laws in Georgia and North Carolina threaten election administration – and what they could mean for the election this year. Read more here.

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Voter Protection Volunteer Opportunities

Help Arizona voters get their ballots! “The Massachusetts Dems Organizing Hub will be partnering with the Arizona Democratic Party to call Arizona Democrats and let them know how to sign up for the state’s Active Early Voter List. Voters on this list are automatically sent an early ballot for each election in which they are eligible to vote. By increasing awareness of this option, we hope to help remove barriers to voting and contribute to strong Democratic turnout in this critical state.” Sign up here.

Join the Montana Voter Protection Hotline!  The Montana primary is June 4 – and this is an important opportunity to engage voters that we hope will also turn out in November. The voter protection hotline takes calls from voters who have questions about when, where, and how to vote. To volunteer on the hotline, join a training here. 

Help re-register purged Ohio voters!  The Ohio Democratic Party, in partnership with Indi Northampton & Swing Blue Western Mass, host weekly phone banks on Thursdays from 5-7pm ET to re-register purged Ohio voters. To join a phone bank, register for a Zoom here.

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Reach out if you want to talk about opportunities to support voter protection programs – and thanks for everything you’re doing for democracy!

Kim

We Fund Voter Protection

In 2020, we ran the Democratic Party’s Voter Protection Program in Georgia, when the state flipped blue for the first time in nearly 30 years.

We pioneered a new model of voter protection, built on sustained investments and long-lasting relationships.

Now, we’re building on that success and adapting the Georgia model to fight voter suppression in other battleground states.

But we can only do it with your support. Join us – and join the fight for voter protection!