Dear John,
I’m not going to sugarcoat this: The freedom to vote is already under attack in 2026. With midterm elections coming up in November, voting rights opponents are working hard to limit people’s access to the ballot box.
The good news? VoteRiders is fighting back with everything we’ve got.
This email will be a little longer than what I usually send, but I want you to have a full understanding of the threats we’re facing, and how we’re working to ensure that voters can still participate in midterm elections.
Here are the legislative threats we’re tracking:
California
Voting rights opponents in California have now collected 1 million signatures to put a voter ID initiative on the ballot this year. California law requires 874,641 signatures to qualify for the ballot, so we believe this initiative will likely be in front of voters this November.
If passed, the initiative would require all voters to show a government issued ID when voting in person, or the last four digits of a government issued ID when voting by mail. We estimate that — depending on how a new law would be written should this ballot measure pass — millions of eligible California voters may not have an accepted form of ID and would face serious barriers to participating in future elections.
VoteRiders is currently conducting extensive research on how many and which Californians would be impacted by this initiative and will share it widely with voters and policy makers in the coming months.
Michigan
Voting rights opponents in Michigan continue to collect signatures to put two initiatives on the ballot this November. Both proposed initiatives would add documentary proof of citizenship (DPOC) requirements to the voting process. DPOC requires a document like a US birth certificate or passport be shown in order to register to vote. Our nationwide research shows that millions of eligible voters do not have easy access to these types of documents.
VoteRiders is participating in the “Decline to Sign” campaign with our Michigan partners to educate Michigan voters on the harms these initiatives would create for voters and democracy and encourage them not to add their signature to either ballot initiative petition.
Nevada
Voter ID will once again be on the ballot in Nevada this year after a ballot measure was approved in 2024. Under Nevada law, voters must approve the initiative twice to become law. This means that, should Nevada voters approve the voter ID measure again this November, the state will have a new ID law in place ahead of the 2028 general election.
North Carolina
Lawmakers are sending a constitutional amendment to voters to amend the state’s constitution to require a photo ID for both in person and mail voting. North Carolina already requires a photo ID to vote in person or by mail, so while this would not change the current law, it would make it harder to change in the future.
Florida
A number of anti-voter bills have been filed in the brand new Florida legislative session starting next week, including bills to require that all new and already registered voters be checked against citizenship databases that have been shown to be seriously flawed. These backend “verification” systems are notoriously unreliable and error-prone, especially for naturalized citizens, people who change their names after getting married or divorced, or anyone with hyphens or spaces in their names, which can show up differently in government databases.
The effect could be that eligible voters (including people who have voted without incident for years) would be kicked off the voter rolls.
New Hampshire
Legislators are trying, once again, to make it harder for students to vote in New Hampshire by attempting to remove student ID as an accepted form of voter ID. The bill has already passed the New Hampshire state house.
What you can do about it
Phew! That was a lot of bad news. Sorry about that — but I want to be sure you get the complete picture of the anti-voter forces we’re up against.
We’d love your help as we work to reach voters to help them overcome the ID-related barriers they face when trying to register and vote. Here are two things you can do to help:
→ Volunteer to help voters! Whether you have one hour a month or many hours a week to help out, VoteRiders has a volunteer opportunity that’s right for you! Sign up to learn about volunteer opportunities like textbanks, letter writing events (like the one we’re hosting Jan. 29), phonebanks, Helpline or Chat services, and voter ID assistance.
→ Donate to support our voter outreach and free help. Every time a law changes about what ID is needed to vote, VoteRiders has to redirect limited funds to that state to ensure voters have accurate and timely information. We also help voters secure an ID and cover all related fees and costs. We always appreciate any financial support you can help with, so we can reach more voters.
Thank you for being a trusted supporter of VoteRiders. Your support strengthens our democracy and will help all eligible voters participate in this year’s all-important midterm elections.
Sincerely,
Lauren Kunis
CEO and Executive Director
VoteRiders
