Category Archives: voters with disabilities

“Designing Accessible Elections: Recommendations from Disability Voting Rights Advocates”

December 14, 2021, 9:06 amelection administration, voters with disabilitiesRick Hasen

Ihaab Syed, Michelle Bishop, Sarah Brannon, Erika Hudson, and Kristen Lee have written this article in ELJ. Here is the abstract: Disability is frequently cited as a reason that Americans do not vote. This article… Continue reading

“G.O.P. Bills Rattle Disabled Voters: ‘We Don’t Have a Voice Anymore’”

June 15, 2021, 6:50 amvoters with disabilitiesRick Hasen

NYT: The Texas legislation, which Democrats blocked but Republicans plan to revive in a special session, is one of a series of Republican voting bills that would disproportionately affect people with disabilities. The Wisconsin Senate approved three last week… Continue reading

“Texas runoff elections show stress of coronavirus pandemic on state’s voting systems”

July 13, 2020, 7:26 amabsentee ballots, election administration, voters with disabilitiesRick Hasen

Texas Tribune: If the primary runoff elections are a test run for November, cracks are becoming apparent in the state’s voting system as it struggles to function under the strain of rampant coronavirus spread.Early voting is over, and Tuesday… Continue reading

“Caucusing in Iowa With a Disability: Red Tape and Unreturned Calls”

January 26, 2020, 8:38 pmprimaries, voters with disabilitiesRick Hasen

NYT: Talk to Iowans with disabilities and you will hear the same story over and over: a nightmarish experience in 2016, and repeated pleas that bring only vague assurances that 2020 will be better. The state Democratic and Republican Parties… Continue reading

“Surge In Voters With Disabilities May Influence 2020 Election”

July 16, 2019, 10:48 ampolitical equality, voters with disabilities, votingJustin Levitt

A reminder of a significant population often overlooked when summary stats are compiled. In 2018, 14.3 million people with disabilities cast ballots, more than the 11.7 million Latino voters that year and nearly as many as the 15.2 million African-American… Continue reading

New Hampshire: “Charlestown mother investigated for voter fraud after helping disabled son vote”

June 12, 2019, 1:02 pmvoters with disabilitiesRick Hasen

Valley News: When Dee Milliken took her 19-year-old son to vote in November, she hoped the experience would strengthen his ties to the community.Justin Milliken, who has cerebral palsy and a seizure condition and uses a wheelchair, is nonverbal and… Continue reading

“Reforming Elections Without Excluding Disabled Voters”

March 28, 2019, 4:47 pmvoters with disabilitiesRick Hasen

Blog post at the Center for American Progress.

Texas: “Harris County, DOJ reach settlement over poll access”

March 13, 2019, 7:18 amvoters with disabilitiesRick Hasen

Houston Chronicle: The U.S. Department of Justice will monitor Harris County elections, at county expense, for up to four years under the settlement of a federal lawsuit over inadequate access to polling places for voters with disabilities.

“Trump administration is using federal disability law to disenfranchise minority voters”

August 22, 2018, 1:16 pmchicanery, voters with disabilities, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

Kira Lerner with a must-read: A majority-black county in rural Georgia announced a plan last week to close seven of its nine polling places ahead of the November election, claiming the polls cannot continue to operate because they are not… Continue reading

“New voting machines a challenge for Michigan’s blind voters”

August 8, 2018, 8:47 amelection administration, voters with disabilitiesRick Hasen

The Detroit Free Press reports.

“Voters with Disabilities: Observations on Polling Place Accessibility and Related Federal Guidance”

December 4, 2017, 7:42 pmvoters with disabilitiesRick Hasen

New GAO report.

“Older Voters Stymied by Tighter ID Requirements”

November 26, 2017, 3:38 pmvoters with disabilities, votingRick Hasen

Paula Span NYT column: Physical barriers at polling places, a longtime obstacle for the elderly and disabled citizens of any age, can prevent older voters’ participation. Voting machines may not accommodate people who use wheelchairs or are visually impaired. The… Continue reading

“Disabled voters’ ballots tossed because they didn’t write their names”

November 15, 2017, 11:06 amvoters with disabilitiesRick Hasen

Wichita Eagle: The ballots of 23 Sedgwick County voters were tossed out Monday under a state law that requires disabled voters to sign their own mail-in ballot envelopes. County commissioners, acting as the canvassing board for last week’s election,… Continue reading

“Report: Many 2016 voting sites lacked full disability access”

November 3, 2017, 10:36 amvoters with disabilitiesRick Hasen

AP: Fewer than one in five polling places were fully accessible to voters with disabilities during the 2016 general election, a government report shows — a finding that has prompted federal officials to recommend the Justice Department adopt stricter compliance… Continue reading