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We’ve been so honored by the response from our supporters about the launch of The Fight, our quarterly newsletter featuring updates including our joint achievements. Supporters like you empower us to do this critical work. Our successes are your successes –– we hope The Fight is a celebration of our collective work.
A MESSAGE FROM LAUREN GROH-WARGO
Dear Readers of The Fight,
With two monumental federal voting rights bills awaiting a vote in the Senate, while the attack on voting rights continues raging in the states, we are at a precipice. Our democracy is in peril but our march for progress continues. Nationally, the GOP is ringing misleading alarm bells to distract voters with inflammatory rhetoric and disinformation. At home in Georgia, Republicans in the state legislature have begun an unprecedented process to take over the Fulton County Board of Elections, using the new powers they gave themselves to undermine elections in legislation earlier this year. This is an attempt to undermine democracy in one of our most resilient and diverse Democratic counties. There are fires everywhere, but I want you to know: we are still fighting, and each and every week we have small to large wins on slowing, stopping or mitigating the damage being done by vote suppressors. Fair Fight Action believes in a future where voting is an equitable, accessible, and trusted process in our democracy. We believe in voters and their right to cast a ballot to make their voices heard. Our democracy should work for everyone. And until it does, we will continue to do the work to help voters across the country. I urge you to stay engaged, stay in this fight, and arm yourself with the resiliency of all those who fought this fight before us, as who has the right to vote and have their vote counted has been fraught and complex since the beginning of our country. When we fight, we win! Thank you for all you do.
Yours in the fight,
Lauren, Senior Advisor to Fair Fight PAC
KEY UPDATES
Fair Fight Action’s Civics for the Culture
Fair Fight Action’s Civics For the Culture released its first in an eight-part series of videos for young people of color. Fair Fight Action will prioritize these videos in social media posts and digital ads to deepen engagement amongst young people who are often overlooked in between election cycles.
Civics for the Culture is Fair Fight Action’s targeted campaign to educate and engage young Black and brown people in the political process before, during, and after Election Day. The educational series will also serve as a curriculum for More Than A Vote as they engage young voters and athletes associated with the organization. Videos from the series will debut every two weeks between now and the end of 2021.
The first season of the series will help demystify civics topics like the need for pre-clearance of changes to election rules, the process for how a bill becomes a law, redistricting, and the role of elected officials at different levels of government.
The first video, released last month, features Civics For the Culture co-creator Chelsey Hall and Stacey Abrams, founder of Fair Fight Action.
Where We Are
Fair Fight Action
On August 24, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. This tremendous victory is due to months of work by progressive advocates and allies like you.
On September 14, a group of Democratic Senators introduced the Freedom to Vote Act. This bill is a reformulated version of the For the People Act that addresses many of Fair Fight Action’s key priorities. On October 6, voting rights leaders in the U.S. Senate introduced the Senate version of the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.
Together, the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and the Freedom to Vote Act will protect our right to vote by ensuring all eligible Americans can register to vote, cast a ballot, and have that ballot counted fairly.
Hot Call Summer and Freedom to Vote Fall
Fair Fight Action relaunched the successful campaign Hot Call Summer as Freedom to Vote Fall. By September, this effort had driven over 80,000 calls to Congress to urge them to pass federal voting rights legislation! Hot Call Summer collaborated with celebrities and influencers to highlight the fight for federal voting rights. Check out our collaboration with EARTHGANG.
What is Next for Voting Rights in the Senate
Together, Fair Fight and Fair Fight Action have fought to make voting rights a top priority for Congress. Fair Fight Action is expecting movement in the Senate in the coming weeks on both the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. That’s why we need you to join us in Freedom to Vote Fall and call your Senators at 833-465-7142, every single day to demand their support for these bills.
Centering Voters and Their Stories
In August, Fair Fight Action flew dozens of voters (several pictured below) from 16 states to Washington, D.C. to speak face-to-face with their Senators and share their personal experiences facing voter suppression. 
To further drive the urgency for Congress to pass critical federal voting legislation, Fair Fight Action led a seven-state national media program featuring testimonials from voters.
The first ad featured voters from West Virginia, Georgia, Louisiana, and Michigan calling on Congress to act. The second ad was released in partnership with Four Directions Native Vote, featuring Native leaders working to protect the freedom to vote. The ad emphasizes the importance of protecting the freedom to vote for Native American communities, who continue to face disproportionate barriers in voting.
In September, Fair Fight Action continued to center voters’ voices by releasing a series of six videos featuring voters from Georgia, West Virginia, Michigan, Louisiana, New Hampshire, and Utah sharing their personal experiences with anti-voting efforts. We encourage you to listen to their moving stories at MyVotingStory.com and share the site with your friends and family.
Disability Council
In April, Fair Fight Action launched our Disability Council, comprised of disability advocates and policy experts from across the country, to better advocate for disabled voters. In August the Disability Council put out a public statement in support of the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, outlining the important things the bill does to protect disabled voters from discrimination. Disabled voters in this country already face disproportionate barriers to accessing the ballot box. With the onslaught of 581 anti-voter bills introduced in 49 states this year, disabled voters could face further restrictions that will make it even more difficult for them to cast their ballots.
Legislative Session
One of the most harmful provisions of Georgia’s Senate Bill 202 allows the Republican-controlled State Election Board to grab local power and take over county election boards. Fulton County, the county with the most voters of color in the state, is the GOP’s primary target. In August, Republican state legislators requested a performance review of Fulton County’s election officials as the first step to a long process to take over the county’s election board. The Fulton performance review is the first time a takeover provision has been employed in Georgia or anywhere in the country. The Fulton performance review represents a dangerous escalation of the assault on our democracy, and Fair Fight Action will be working to mitigate its harmful impact.
Fair Fight Action also continues to push for Medicaid expansion to be added to Georgia’s special legislative session agenda. With Covid-19 cases persisting, the 500,000 Georgians who fall into the coverage gap cannot continue to wait for coverage.
Georgia’s Assembly has been called back into session for a special redistricting session beginning November 3. Fair Fight Action and our allies will be following closely and fighting against partisan gerrymanders.
Litigation
Fair Fight Action v. Raffensperger is moving forward and our legal team is preparing for trial. The federal lawsuit against Georgia’s Secretary of State and State Election Board alleges unconstitutional voter suppression. In the course of the trial, the State of Georgia will have to defend its suppressive voting practices while Fair Fight Action will seek remedies to put a permanent end to those practices.
Notably, our case may be the first major federal voting rights case brought under the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to go to trial after the recent Supreme Court ruling Brnovich v. DNC. Fair Fight Action will continue to use every tool available, including the judicial system, to protect the right to vote. We will keep you updated on the latest developments.
Sham Election Reviews
Fair Fight Action continues to work with partners and coalitions across the country to monitor and mitigate the sham election reviews that are being perpetrated in various states across the country. They are a means by which the far right continues to peddle dangerous disinformation narratives. These sham reviews are attempts at election subversion by far right groups intent on undermining the freedom to vote. Fair Fight Action and our partners provide reliable and accurate content about these sham reviews on NotAnAudit.com.
Fair Fight
National Fellows Program
Fair Fight launched a National Fellowship for state legislators from South Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Tennessee. This program is an expansion of our Georgia fellowship that began in 2019. The fellowships provide mentorship to elected officials on Fair Fight’s mission: voting rights, legislative functionality, and grassroots advocacy.
District Attorney Program
In a first-of-its-kind partnership with progressive District Attorneys, Fair Fight is providing resources, informative programming, and grassroots advocacy to a cohort of District Attorneys in the state to support issues that directly impact Georgia communities.
Endorsements
Fair Fight continues to invest in building progressive power in Georgia. In September, Fair Fight issued a new slate of endorsements for city council and mayoral candidates across the state. These dedicated public servants reflect the diversity of their communities and will continue working to bring more Georgians into the democratic process.
IN THE NEWS
We are at a critical moment in the voting rights fight. Between the 2021 municipal elections, redistricting, the federal legislative fight, and with 2022 elections just around the corner, there is a lot to digest. Here are some key news clips about where we are and the path ahead:
Don't Miss Stacey Abrams’ CNN Op-Ed: Stacey Abrams: 'Callous' leadership in these states has left millions of Americans without health coverage
THE ROAD AHEAD
Suppressive Bills in State Legislatures
On September 7, Texas became the latest state to pass an anti-voter law, impacting elections as soon as 2022. In 2021, according to 538’s most recent count, 581 anti-voter bills have been introduced in 49 states and 52 bills were enacted in 21 states. Fair Fight Action is working with in-state allies, labor unions, and national advocates to mitigate the impact of anti-voter legislative proposals by stopping, slowing down, and making legislation less harmful to voters and democracy whenever possible. Fair Fight Action will continue to work with our allies to engage voters in state-level organizing and leverage these fights to make the case for why Congress must act urgently to protect the freedom to vote.
Redistricting
As if passing legislation to suppress the vote wasn’t harmful enough, right-wing lawmakers are gerrymandering voters they don’t like out of their districts. We are tracking each state’s redistricting processes, including the special legislative sessions states are holding to approve maps.
We will keep you updated on the redistricting process and keep you informed on how you can join us in the fight for fair maps. For the most current information on redistricting, you can sign up here to get updates from the National Democratic Redistricting Committee.
2022: MIDTERM ELECTIONS, VOTING PROTECTIONS, AND ELECTIONS ADMINISTRATION
As we prepare for 2022, we are working with our state and national partners to identify needs and plan for both traditional and expanded voter protection programs around the country. Fair Fight will continue leading hard-hitting, strategic campaigns and programs that respond to the evolving threat posed by the anti-voter war machine.
WAYS TO FIGHT BACK
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Advocate: Continue to call your Senators every day at 833-465-7142 to demand they pass both the Freedom to Vote Act AND the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.
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Volunteer: Sign up here for a training to help us text voters and sign up here to ensure you get emails about future volunteer opportunities.
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Engage: Follow us on: Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. The best way to stay engaged is to be on the lookout on our social media for calls to action in real time! Share Fair Fight’s content with your networks to promote good information and encourage others to join our fight.
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Share Your Story: Wherever you live, go to MyVotingStory.com to share your voting story with Fair Fight Action.
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Contact: You can reach our team with any questions by responding directly to this email.
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Donate: You can contribute to fighting voter suppression, here.
Together in the Fight,
Your Fair Fight Team
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