Dear John,
Today I’m writing to you to share an exciting evolution in VoteRiders’ work, which will further advance our mission to prevent voter ID laws from silencing eligible voters in our democracy.
For the past 12 years, we have focused on direct assistance and education for voters in the face of existing voter ID laws. Going forward we will continue those two areas of focus unabated, but we will also add nonpartisan policy engagement and advocacy against damaging voter ID laws to our work. And where we see opportunities to support ID-related laws that expand access to the ballot box, we'll dive in, too.
This email will be a little longer than what I normally send but I want you to understand why we’re growing our portfolio of work and how you can get involved.
What We've Learned in 12+ Years
When VoteRiders was founded in 2012, we were laser-focused on helping people understand and navigate the growing web of voter ID rules they faced. Our founder, Kathleen Unger, understood that people who had successfully been voting for years might suddenly be blocked from voting because they didn’t have the necessary ID. Others were likely to stay home or give up in the face of the difficult process of tracking down paperwork and securing an ID.
As our work grew to help more people over the years, we heard more and more stories of people who were disenfranchised by voter ID laws: birth certificates burned up in house fires; stolen wallets; women whose married name didn’t match their voter registration; people returning to DMVs four, five, 10 times and still being denied an ID. You can read some of these stories on our website.
To bolster what we intuitively knew from the thousands of individuals we’ve helped over the years, VoteRiders commissioned new research in 2023 about the impact of voter ID laws (the previous research was nearly 20 years out of date).
Last year, we released results from a comprehensive national survey on voter ID access, barriers to obtaining ID, and knowledge of ID laws that revealed the extent of the harm voter ID laws inflict. Our research shows that around 34.5 million voting-eligible citizens lack an unexpired form of photo ID with their current information on it – the kind of ID that is increasingly required to vote in states across the country.
A Wave of New and Stricter Voter ID Laws
Even as we see the destructive outcomes of existing voter ID laws on our democracy, we also know that more and stricter ID laws are on the way – including restrictive ID rules for both voter registration and voting itself.
Between 2020 and 2024, 17 states enacted new ID-related barriers to the ballot box. In 2025, we’re seeing dangerous “proof of citizenship” laws introduced at both the state and federal levels that would require specific documentation such as a US birth certificate or passport to even register to vote — documents to which millions of Americans do not have easy access.
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We’re expecting the SAVE Act to come up for a vote in the US House of Representatives as soon as next week. This dangerous bill would require proof of citizenship paperwork for all voters seeking to register or update their registration, potentially stopping millions of eligible citizens from voting.
- We’re also seeing voter ID and proof of citizenship bills pop up in statehouses across the country. So far, we’re tracking bills in Michigan, Texas (which has nine separate ID bills moving at the moment!), and Pennsylvania, with more expected in the coming weeks.
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In Wisconsin, the legislature moved forward an initiative to enshrine the state’s current photo ID law into the state constitution. This is intended to make it harder for future courts to overturn the current law mandating a photo ID. The proposed amendment will be on the April 1 ballot in Wisconsin.
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In Maine, enough signatures were gathered to move forward a ballot initiative to require a photo ID for voting, and voters in November will likely decide whether or not to advance this voting restriction.
If passed and enacted into law, these bills would devastate voting rights and harm our democracy by excluding millions of eligible voters.
Meeting The Challenge We Face
In the face of new and increasing barriers to the right to vote, VoteRiders is growing our work to meet this moment. Going forward, we'll be engaging in policy and advocacy activities like sharing our research, meeting with policymakers, driving constituent messages to state and federal representatives, and building public awareness of upcoming legislation. All while remaining nonpartisan and in continuous pursuit of our mission in service to voters nationwide, of course.
That means that we will work to stop voter ID and proof of citizenship bills that we believe will unjustly keep people from voting, and support bills related to ID that expand access to the ballot box instead of restricting it. We want to make sure that legislators and the general public understand the harm that unnecessary ID laws inflict on our democracy.
Our uniquely effective voter ID education and assistance programs support millions of voters each year to navigate growing ID-related barriers to the ballot box. But at the same time, we can do more in service of underrepresented voters and the unheard voices in our democracy. We need to break down the systemic barriers to the ballot box that come in the form of requiring ID to register and vote.
If we can stop harmful legislation before it becomes law, then we can avoid ID-related confusion and disenfranchisement for millions rather than support these voters after the fact.
We believe that adding advocacy to our work — in addition to our ongoing work educating voters about existing ID requirements and helping them secure an ID — provides an expansive and holistic approach to our mission. If we want to ensure that no eligible voter is prevented from casting a ballot that counts due to voter ID laws, we must work to prevent additional onerous, restrictive, and unnecessary ID bills from passing, in addition to helping people navigate them where they are already in place.
Ready To Take Action?
What does this mean for you, John? The good news is, we will continue to do the important work you’ve always trusted us to do. We will continue our current, large-scale voter education efforts, including letter writing, textbanking, and national media campaigns.
We will also continue our one-on-one free help for voters who need an ID, including helping them track down documents, make appointments, secure transportation, and cover all fees.
But now we’ll also call on you to reach out to your state and federal representatives and share why you believe that voter ID and proof of citizenship laws harm our democracy by stopping eligible voters from participating in the political process. Your voice and your story are powerful, and we’ll ask you to share them at critical times with legislators who need to hear from you.
We have a number of ways you can get more involved with VoteRiders right now. We’d love for you to take action in the ways that work best for you.
→ Take action to stop the SAVE Act! VoteRiders’ first advocacy campaign is against the destructive SAVE Act, which has been introduced at the federal level and would impact all American voters by requiring proof of citizenship documents (like a birth certificate) in order to register to vote or update your registration. We’ve made it easy to take action — take a few minutes to contact your member of Congress and tell them to reject the SAVE Act. (You can also share this one-pager with your community.)
→ Volunteer to support voters! Whether you have one hour a month or many hours a week to help out, we have a volunteer opportunity that’s right for you! Sign up to learn about volunteer opportunities like textbanks, letter writing events (like this one tomorrow night), phonebanks, Helpline or Chat services, and voter ID assistance. You can even access our DIY letter-writing kit and get going right away to contact at-risk Wisconsin voters ahead of their April 1 elections.
→ Make a monthly donation to support our work year-round! We’re in the middle of our Monthly Donor Drive, and we’d love it if you started a tax-deductible monthly gift to support our advocacy, education, and assistance efforts all year long. Monthly donors help us plan and budget for the work ahead. (You can also make a one-time gift.)
I know that was a lot of information, but I want to be sure you understand the expanded work we’re tackling going forward, and more importantly, why we’re doing it. The stakes are too high to sit this out, and we’re proud to roll up our sleeves and take a stand against harmful legislation that would require ID to vote and silence eligible voters.
Thank you for being a trusted supporter of VoteRiders. Your support strengthens our democracy, allowing every eligible voter to make their voice heard at the ballot box.
Sincerely,
Lauren Kunis
CEO and Executive Director
VoteRiders
