Why It Matters - Voter Rights

One of the core rights as an American is the right to vote. Your vote is your choice in how the government works, what direction you wish the city, state, and country to take. Collectively, all Americans make their choices at the voting booth. Interfering with that right, restricting access of the voice of the citizenry can result in lopsided representation and an imbalance in our society affecting everything from education, access to clean water and food, health care, equality, business egulations, taxation, foreign policy, and so much more.

According to a report from the Brennan Center for Justice, voting access has been expanded in some states, while it has been restricted in others in 2014 alone.

Voting access has been expanded in the following states:

Key Facts:

• 190 laws to expand voting access have been introduced in 31 states in 2014
• At least 20 states introduced bills to modernize their voter registration systems to make it easier for eligible citizens to register to vote.
• At least 10 states introduced bills to allow voters to register the same day they vote (same-day registration)
• At least 9 states introduced bills to expand opportunities to register to vote
• At least 13 states introduced bills that would allow students under the age of 18 to pre-register to vote
• At least 23 states introduced bills that would expand opportunities for early in-person voting
• At least 12 states introduced bills to expand opportunities for those with criminal records to vote
• At least 15 states introduced bills to expand opportunities to cast an absentee ballot
• At least seven states introduced bills aimed at expanding opportunities for members of the military to vote
• At least five states introduced bills that would make it easier for voters with disabilities to vote
• At least three states introduced bills that would require a pre-clearance procedure modeled after Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act
• At least three states introduced bills that would make it a crime to knowingly distribute false information about an election to mislead voters
• More Americans had the ability to make their voices heard in the 2014 elections in these states

Voting Access has been restricted in the following states:

Key Facts:

• At least 49 restrictive bills were introduced or carried over from 2013 in 19 states
• At least 19 states introduced bills either requiring voters to show photo ID at the polls or making existing photo ID laws more restrictive
• At least 13 states introduced bills to limit voter registration mobilization efforts
• At least four states introduced bills to limit existing opportunities to vote in person
• At least two states introduced bills that would make it harder for students to register and vote
• At least six states introduced bills that would reduce access to absentee ballots
• At least two states introduced bills to limit protections for voter purges and increase the chance of wrongful removal of eligible voters

* Source: Brennan Center for Justice, Voting Laws Roundup 2014