Friend –

There's a lot still to unpack around the election – but above all, we know democracy persists.

Despite a president who would rather tear down our electoral process than admit defeat, our country saw record turnout and an avalanche of mail-in ballots in the pandemic. Every vote will be counted, and the people chose the winner.

But we're not simply talking about the presidential race. The ACLU worked tirelessly this cycle, through nonpartisan, issue-based media campaigns and voter education, to ensure people could cast an informed vote all the way down the ballot.

Together, we made an impact. Here are a few key civil liberties that also won in this election:

• Marijuana legalization in states across the country. Voters nationwide voiced one thing very clearly: It's long past time to end our country's racist War on Drugs. New Jersey, Arizona, Montana, and South Dakota all voted to legalize recreational cannabis. Mississippi and South Dakota voted to legalize the medical use of cannabis in-state. And Oregon became the first state in U.S. history to decriminalize all simple drug possession. Read more on this and other criminal justice reform advancements here.
• Immigrants' rights and criminal justice in South Carolina and Georgia. In 3 key sheriff races – Charleston, South Carolina, and Cobb and Gwinnett Counties in Georgia – voters supported holding the police accountable, promoting racial justice, and ending local collaboration with ICE.
• Privacy rights – and less police surveillance – in Portland, Maine. The city strengthened its ban on police use of face recognition technology. This is important progress in the fight to defend our privacy rights and stop the over-policing and surveillance of our communities. (This link brings you to a third-party website, twitter.com)
• Racial justice and economic justice in Nebraska. People voted to stop predatory payday lending in the state, which disproportionately targets people of color, veterans, and other marginalized communities, trapping them into a cycle of debt.
• Reproductive freedom and housing rights in Colorado. Voters defeated Proposition 115, rejecting the ballot measure that would ban abortion later in pregnancy – and ensuring safe, compassionate abortion access for all. Meanwhile, Boulder, CO became the 7th jurisdiction to secure the right to counsel for residents facing eviction. This is a huge win to fight mass evictions and a critical racial and gender justice issue.

This list should give you hope: hope that we can all unite for the rights we believe in, hope that we will achieve more in the fight ahead – and hope that together, we are powerful.

For four years, we've weathered an all-out attack on immigrants, racist dog whistles, presidential back-slapping of white supremacists, and more. The ACLU was there to defend against Trump's unconstitutional assaults then – and we'll continue in the final months of his presidency and beyond.

And that's all because you're with us, ACLU Supporter. Thanks for making this progress possible.

Onward,

The ACLU Team