Despite an unprecedented series of challenges—a global pandemic, extreme weather, rampant misinformation, voter intimidation, and coordinated efforts to disenfranchise millions of voters of color—Black voters turned out in record numbers in 2020 to have their voices heard in one of our nation’s most important election years.
But let’s be clear. The election did not go smoothly. Record turnout nationally and in many states was only possible thanks to a Herculean effort on the part of many non-profit organizations and many thousands of individuals and volunteers, as well as the enormous sums of money spent on election security and countering misinformation.
Immediately after the January 6 insurrection at the Capitol, states across the nation began introducing legislation to suppress the rights of voters and diminish access to the ballot box for voters of color – a clear and direct response to the impact those voters had in the 2020 election season and again in Georgia’s 2021 runoff election. Lawmakers responded by introducing hundreds of voter suppression bills in 49 states using baseless claims and conspiracy theories about non-existent “election fraud.”
While the specific forms of suppression and intimidation may have been new, these attacks on the fundamental rights of Black citizens and other voters of color all grew from the same rotten root of anti-Blackness and white supremacy that’s disfigured our democracy throughout the history of our country.
We are still seeing the devastating consequences of the Shelby County v. Holder decision eight years after it gutted Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act and dismantled the preclearance process. Had the preclearance process been in place, many of these bills likely would have been stopped before ever becoming law.
New legislation to protect the franchise, such as the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act (H.R. 4), are desperately needed. It is imperative that the Senate immediately act to pass critical voting rights legislation. Municipal election season and the redistricting process are already underway. There is no time to waste.
Democracy Defended captures and analyzes election-related activities undertaken by LDF during the 2020 election season, including our Prepared to Vote (PTV) — a nonpartisan voter education and advocacy initiative — and Voting Rights Defender — a year-round effort to identify voter suppression and take decisive action to eliminate them — programs (VRD) run by LDF’s Thurgood Marshall Institute. It provides documentation of barriers faced by Black voters in PTV/VRD focus states and solutions for policy makers, election administrators, and community members to implement to ensure fair access to the vote in future elections.
Our organizing and election monitoring operations had components with national scope, but focused primarily on 10 states — Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Texas — most of which were subject to Section 5 Voting Rights Act oversight before the Shelby County v. Holder decision by the Supreme Court.
To provide accurate and updated voter information during a year when voting procedures changed rapidly in response to the global pandemic, LDF launched its first-ever voting microsite. The site provides state-specific information for voters to check on deadlines, voting requirements, polling locations, and much more. It also provides voters with the ability to report incidents of voter suppression and intimidation.
Thanks in part to the essential work of our partners including the Poor People’s Campaign, Forward Justice, and the Election Protection Coalition run by the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, PTV and VRD had a significant impact, resulting in the deployment of over 1,300 poll monitors and the recruitment—in partnership with LeBron James’ More Than A Vote—of 42,500 poll workers.
In addition to alerting election officials about instances of voter intimidation, LDF’s litigation team went to the courts to push back against instances of voter intimidation perpetrated by government officials.
Democracy Defended documents pre-election barriers to voting; state-specific litigation; information on voter issues reported by our trained nonpartisan poll monitors and remote monitors; state and county specific advocacy PTV/VRD teams undertook to counteract the barriers and issues identified; and data related to direct voter education.
Alabama was one of the states previously covered by the Section 5 preclearance provision of the Voting Rights Act prior to the Shelby County decision in 2013. In 2020, the combination of Alabama’s broad restrictive voting procedures designed to suppress Black voting power, a raging pandemic, and major power outages caused by storms created immense barriers for voters. VRD conducted state level advocacy, but also engaged in advocacy focused on specific counties. We worked with regional voting rights partners, local community organizations, and volunteer poll monitors.
In advance of the election and through our partnership with LeBron James’s More Than A Vote initiative, LDF recruited 2,485 Alabama residents to become poll workers.
In partnership with Forward Justice and Poor People’s Campaign, we recruited and trained 141 volunteers to be nonpartisan poll monitors.
Before the election, LDF mailed voter education materials to 177,741 potential voters in Alabama.
LDF sent personal protective equipment and voter education to another 58,023 Alabamians.
LDF poll monitors in Alabama reported:
127 long lines
187 parking or accessibility issues
160 instances of inadequate masking and/or social distancing
103 examples of inadequate and/or confusing signage regarding the location of polling sites
According to one LDF volunteer on-the-ground in Alabama, “Volunteers attempted to get the Sheriff to help direct traffic in the roads near the polling place. It took her nearly an hour to leave. Additionally, voters were seen carrying relatives into polling places due to accessibility issues. We contacted the probate judge, who came to the location. They [had] poll workers directing traffic, ADA access cleared, and the previous signs [were] now visible.”
There are numerous issues for future advocacy including:
VRD conducted state level advocacy in Florida, but also engaged in advocacy focused on specific counties in the Florida panhandle. We worked with regional voting rights partners, local community organizations, and volunteer poll monitors.
Resistance to the full instatement of Amendment 4/Restoration of Rights
Misinformation/Disinformation
Challenges to voter’s eligibility to cast ballots
Shortage of poll workers because of COVID-19
Precinct closures/consolidation/location issues
Heightened risk of voter intimidation
Risk of discriminatory voter purges
Erroneous refusals to give provisional ballots
Through LDF’s partnership with More Than A Vote, approximately 900 Florida residents applied to work as poll workers for the general election.
Working with Common Cause, 63 volunteers were trained to conduct local poll monitoring and voter education.
We sent 50,000 voters in Florida educational and informational material via text message.
Additionally, we sent educational materials and personal protective equipment (PPE) to 9,200 Floridians.
We also sent educational material to 109,136 voters in Florida through traditional mail.
We provided our on-the-ground local partners with 6,000 sets of PPE and voter educational materials to distribute to voters.
Citing the threat of Hurricane Zeta, which struck the state’s coast on October 28, 2020, three Florida counties—Escambia, Santa Rosa, and Okaloosa—shortened their early voting hours. LDF’s Voting Rights Defender (VRD) project team sent text messages to 50,000 voters in the affected counties informing them of the change and providing them with up-to-date information on how and when to vote.
On Election Day, there was a 30-minute-long power outage at the Damascus Road Missionary, in Escambia County. After learning that voters were incorrectly told that they’d have to wait to vote, rather than being provided with emergency ballots, an LDF volunteer worked to ensure those voters who were there got their emergency ballots and worked with local partners to ensure the same mistake did not happen again.
Despite the Supervisor of Elections Office in Okaloosa County’s decision to close its doors in response to a COVID-19 outbreak, LDF maintained near-constant communication with the Office’s external counsel, which agreed to mitigate the harm to potential voters of their remaining closed by take several steps, such as:
» Agreeing to station an employee at the closed office to redirect voters to open offices
» Accepting vote-by-mail ballots at the closed office in a drop box
» Sending additional employees to the open offices to handle any increase in traffic
On-the-ground partners reported instances of voter intimidation in Florida on Election Day, including the menacing presence of loud music, trucks, and tents clearly in favor of one of the candidates, as well as vehicles blocking access to polling site entrances.
Removing the requirement that returning citizens pay fines and fees in order to vote and addressing the absence of accessible information on outstanding fines and fees.
Improving regulations for operating election sites, drop boxes, and curing ballots.
Addressing voter intimidation.
Removing unnecessary police presence at polling sites.
Providing adequate training of poll workers about the difference between poll watchers and poll monitors and about the importance of allowing nonpartisan poll monitors to conduct their volunteer work.
As with many states, the Georgia elections were significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Georgia Presidential Preference Primary, originally scheduled for March, was rescheduled for June 9, and combined with the Statewide Primary. Georgia held run-off elections on January 5, 2021, for two U.S. Senate seats and a Public Service Commission seat. LDF conducted statewide advocacy, but also engaged in advocacy focused on specific counties in southwest Georgia. We worked with regional voting rights partners, local community organizations, and volunteer poll monitors. At the invitation of Georgia voting rights partner organizations, we engaged in targeted local and statewide advocacy during the runoff election.
Stringent voter ID laws
Poor election administration, including inadequate poll worker training and machine malfunctions
Discriminatory voter purges
Polling site closures and consolidations/ accessibility issues
High risk of voter intimidation activity
Through our work with More Than A Vote to recruit poll workers, over 700 Georgians applied to become poll workers for the general election.
In partnership with Forward Justice and Poor Peoples Campaign, we recruited and trained 55 volunteers to conduct local poll monitoring and voter education.
Direct text campaign in Lowndes County to recruit poll workers resulted in 45 applicants.
Voter education and information via text messages were sent to over 60,000 voters.
Voter education and PPE mailed to 18,818 voters.
Voter education materials mailed to 81,426 voters.
Provided partners at South Georgia Voters’ League (SGVL), ProGeorgia Coalition, and the Georgia NAACP almost 18,000 door knocker style nonpartisan voter literature cards. Partners, including Black Voters Matter, were also sent 48,900 sets of PPE to distribute to safeguard voters at the polls from COVID-19. We provided SGVL 1,350 nonpartisan palm cards in Spanish to distribute to voters.
Voter education and information sent via text messages to approximately 7,200 Black and Latinx voters in Macon-Bibb County.
Led advocacy efforts in Cobb and Hall counties to open closed early voting locations.
Voter education and information sent via text messages to Black and Latinx voters in Cobb and Hall counties.
Monitored and conducted advocacy regarding the voter challenges across all 159 counties in Georgia.
Provided partners at Black Voters Matter, South Georgia Voters’ League (SGVL), and the Georgia NAACP 56,050 nonpartisan voter literature cards. Provided partners 11,000 sets of PPE to distribute to safeguard voters at the polls from COVID-19. Provided SGVL 1,350 nonpartisan palm cards in Spanish to distribute to voters.
A right-wing organization called True the Vote orchestrated a massive, statewide voter suppression effort to disqualify more than 360,000 Georgia registered voters residing in all 159 counties, relying on notoriously unreliable methods of verification—like comparing National Change of Address data with voter registration data.
LDF and our partner organizations, wrote to officials in every county, urging them to reject these challenges and outlining why they were baseless, untimely, and may be discriminatory under federal and state law.
We contacted county officials and monitored boards of elections websites and public notices to determine whether counties would hold hearings. Our team coordinated with partners to attend hearings in person, reached out to county officials beforehand, and provided support to board members who had questions.
LDF poll monitors reported:
9 polling location changes
8 parking or accessibility issues
17 incidences of insufficient masking and/or social distancing
10 examples of inadequate and/or confusing signage 24 instances of a potentially intimidating law enforcement presence
According to reports from multiple counties on Election Day, voters were given incorrect information about voting in-person after requesting an absentee ballot. Some voters were told that they had to have their absentee ballots in-hand to cancel them and opt instead to vote in person. This was false. Other voters were told—again incorrectly—that they’d already voted.
LDF’s teams and partners on the ground in Georgia during the runoff elections reported significant instances of voter intimidation.
Multiple reports found that the American Woodmark Corporation in Jackson was prohibiting workers from taking time off from work to vote, despite this being allowed under Georgia law, and telling its workers that they had to work until 7 pm – the exact time polls close in the state. Reports indicated that “the workers at the location are predominately African American.” LDF staff reached out to the company by phone, and the company ultimately allowed employees to leave at 4 pm.
Additionally, Chatham County Board of Elections Member Antwan Lang reported that he had a poll watcher removed from the Islands Christian Church polling site in Savannah. Lang posted on Instagram: “She disregarded the rules as a poll watcher and yelled at poll workers and voters […] If you are a poll watcher and you disrespect my staff or our voters I will call the sheriff deputies myself!”
Take measures to address voter intimidation at the polls.
Counter and address misinformation/ disinformation in-person and online.
Require proper poll site signage.
Provide accurate and timely information online regarding poll hours and location changes.
Establish broad voter ID acceptance and address ongoing voter ID issues.
Ensure access to absentee ballots and effective absentee ballot management.
Cease improper voter roll purges.
Secure adequate polling locations in every county.
Combat the impacts of recently adopted voter suppression measures.
Louisiana has an extensive history of voter suppression as a state formerly covered in full by the Voting Rights Act Section 5 preclearance requirements prior to the Shelby County decision. The state is also exceptional for its frequent election cycles, governed by a unique set of voting laws and bureaucratic emergency planning requirements. In 2020, Louisiana voters faced multiple interlacing emergencies requiring unprecedented election accommodations and planning. Along with our partner state and local voting rights advocates, LDF pursued multitactic efforts—in the legislature, courts, and local communities—to pave the way for historic participation in all the elections.
Limited early voting days*
Limited vote by mail including: excuse required for absentee ballot,* witness requirement, limitations on who can sign and hand deliver ballots, no drop boxes.
Outdated voting machines/malfunctions
Frequent elections and runoffs throughout the year
High risk of voter intimidation
Complicated and protracted contingency planning process
*Laws/rules changed due to pandemic
Through our partnership with More Than A Vote, almost 200 Louisiana residents applied to become poll workers for the general election.
Through our local partnerships and with the Poor People’s Campaign/Forward Justice, VRD/PTV trained 136 volunteers to conduct local nonpartisan poll monitoring and voter education.
Voter education and information via text messages sent to 221,329 voters.
Voter education and PPE mailed to 47,045 voters.
Voter education materials mailed to 147,774 voters.
Approximately 30 law firm volunteers trained to conduct remote monitoring.
Provided partners at Power Coalition for Equity and Justice (Power Coalition), V.O.T.E. (Voice of the Experienced), Engaging New Voices and Voters, BRVotes, Roll to the Polls, and NAACP Louisiana State Conference 34,000 door knocker style voter literature cards. Partners were also provided 6,020 sets of PPE to safeguard volunteers and voters from COVID-19.
LDF poll monitors in Louisiana submitted the following reports:
70 reports of long lines to vote
136 reports of confusing and/or incorrect signage
35 reports of the potentially intimidating presence of law enforcement
169 reports of parking or accessibility issues
66 reports of insufficient mask use and/or social distancing
PTV/VRD received a serious report out of the City of Baker—where roughly 84 percent of residents identify as Black—where a white man with Trump and “Blue Lives Matter” flags was wielding a firearm near a polling site.
Although media reports initially indicated that local law enforcement intervened and the man left the area, poll monitor volunteers reported, from a safe distance, that the man was still present and stationed just slightly beyond the immediate proximity of the voting site. Law enforcement officials told partners in some accounts that they did not intervene to avoid escalating tensions, and in other instances said that it was because the man was not doing anything illegal. According to some media reports, meanwhile, the man had received advance approval from the police department to openly carry his firearm at a distance from the polling site.
Within less than an hour of the volunteers’ arrival, and several hours since the first reports of the man’s presence were received, he left. While the incident was deescalated and worse outcomes avoided, it is unknown if any voters who witnessed the open display of weaponry were deterred from continuing to the polling site.
Increase accessible early voting and Election Day polling sites, with adequate parking and signage.
Voter education on recent legislation to expand time allowed at voting machine to cast a ballot (more than three minutes).
Voter education on permanent extension of early voting period during presidential election cycles.
Contingency planning for weather events and other potential election disruptions.
Procure new and improved voting machines.
Consideration of alignment of election dates or other solutions to overcome election fatigue and excessive costs from constant elections and low turnout runoffs.
Track procurement process for new voting machines.
Engagement in redistricting process to ensure fair districts
No online registration for new voters
No early voting
Strict limits on voting by mail/absentee voting including: excuse requirement– *COVID-19 accepted as an excuse for absentee voting only if you are under a doctor’s quarantine order or caring for a dependent that is under a physician-imposed quarantine due to COVID-19 and burdensome witness and notary requirements for absentee by mail
Broad disenfranchisement for criminal convictions
Strict voter ID requirements
Strict curbside voting measures during the pandemic – available only for those with physical disabilities or those who tested positive for COVID-19
High risk of voter intimidation activity
Poll location changes without adequate notice to voters
Broad voter purges
Through our partnership with More Than A Vote, almost 800 Mississippi residents applied to become poll workers for the general election.
Through our partnership with Forward Justice and Poor Peoples Campaign, we recruited and trained over 50 volunteers to conduct local poll monitoring and voter education.
Voter education and information sent via text to over 177,000 registered voters.
Voter education and PPE mailed to 20,874 voters.
Voter education materials mailed to 155,649 voters.
On Election Day, poll monitors in Mississippi submitted reports on the following issues:
39 reports of long lines to vote
48 reports on accessibility and/or parking issues
38 reports on incidents featuring insufficient masking and/or social distancing
41 reports on inadequate and/or confusing signage
5 reports of voter intimidation activity
In reference to people who were attempting to intimidate voters, one volunteer reported: “They are parked across the street wearing [political] gear and they seem to be monitoring the poll. The man wearing the MAGA sweatshirt tried to intimidate [a colleague] and myself. He demanded to see our credentials to be poll workers. We, of course, continued walking and didn’t respond.”
Address disenfranchisement for criminal convictions.
Expand voting beyond Election Day with early voting and vote-by-mail.
Require counties to timely report polling location changes to the state so voters have access to accurate polling location information.
Expand curbside voting measures to include additional voters, such as seniors and other vulnerable populations.
Establish a tracking process for affidavit ballots.
Create online registration for new voters.
South Carolina has a well-documented history of limited suffrage and voter suppression, especially targeting Black voters. South Carolina was one of the states covered in its entirety by the Voting Rights Act Section 5 preclearance requirement prior to the Shelby County decision in 2013. Most recently, the legislature has advanced voter ID laws that disproportionately disenfranchise Black voters. LDF found that County Election Boards used an electronic poll book that omitted registered voters, failed to properly train poll workers about curbside access, and did not properly train poll workers in general. In addition to the noted systemic issues, increased voter intimidation and the COVID-19 pandemic created a challenging voting environment in 2020. In ordinary times, South Carolina has restrictive voting options, with restricted availability of absentee ballots, burdensome witness requirements for absentee ballots, and no early voting. The pandemic in the 2020 election season exacerbated South Carolina’s significant burdens to voting.
No Early voting *
Strict Voter ID Requirements
Excuse Required for Absentee Ballot *
*Rules/laws changed due to COVID-19 pandemic
Through our partnership with More Than A Vote, over 800 South Carolinians applied to become poll workers for the general election.
Through our partnership with Forward Justice and Poor Peoples Campaign, we jointly recruited and trained 65 volunteers to conduct local poll monitoring and voter education.
Voter education and information provided via text messages to over 150,000 voters .
Voter education and PPE mailed to 53,483 voters.
Voter education materials mailed to 117,669 voters .
On Election Day, poll monitors in South Carolina submitted reports on the following issues:
23 reports of long lines to vote
25 reports of inadequate and/or confusing signage
4 reports of voter intimidation
26 reports on accessibility and/or parking issues
34 reports on situations in which masking and/or social distancing was inadequate
As one volunteer noted, greater voter education regarding curbside voting in South Carolina is a clear need: “There is limited knowledge regarding how curbside voting works. The signage is here; and, so far, I have been able to direct voters to the curbside. One asked me about it, and another I saw was struggling to get out of their car. I informed them that curbside voting was an option. The poll workers are not keeping watch of the curb regularly, so I have been alerting them when cars pull up to the curbside.”
Eliminate the excuse requirement for absentee voting/mail-in voting.
Expand early voting.
Eliminate witness requirements for absentee ballots.
Ensure adequate polling place signage.
Ensure adequate poll worker training related to curbside voting availability.
Provide sufficient polling locations to eliminate long lines.
Ensure accessibility/ADA compliance at polling locations.
Before the Shelby County decision in 2013, Texas was one of the states required to get federal approval for voting changes under Section 5 of the VRA. With this loss of pre-clearance, the state government immediately placed new suppressive voting policies that continue its long history of limiting full political participation for Black, Latinx, and Asian citizens. Resistance to expanding ballot access by Texas officials manifested in many ways resulting in disastrous wait times in certain counties during the March 2020 primaries. The COVID-19 pandemic both aggravated the problem of limited voter registration and voting options and provided a push to change critical elements of the current election system.
No online voter registration
Excuse required for mail ballot
Short early voting period
Stringent Voter ID laws and barriers to obtaining ID alternatives
Polling site closures/consolidation/location accessibility issues
Rejection of mail-in ballots with no cure process (e.g. signature match issue)
Through our partnership with More Than A Vote, almost 8,000 Texans applied to become poll workers.
Through our partnership with Forward Justice and Poor Peoples Campaign, we jointly recruited and trained 62 volunteers to conduct local poll monitoring and voter education.
Voter education information sent via text messages to almost 67,000 voters.
Voter education and PPE mailed to 29,353 voters.
Voter education materials mailed to 73,340 voters.
Over 55 law firm volunteers trained to conduct remote monitoring.
On Election Day, poll monitors in Texas submitted reports on the following issues:
23 reported long lines to vote
11 reported instances of the potentially intimidating presence of law enforcement
5 reported accessibility/parking issues
6 reported incidences of voter intimidation
One story from a volunteer is representative of the kind of on-the-ground efforts LDF engaged in on Election Day to have every prospective vote counted:
“A voter in McLennan County was unable to vote after receiving a denial letter just a day before the election stating that their mail-in ballot was rejected and flagged. This voter, along with his wife, were told they were not eligible to vote by mail—despite confirming they were registered. […] After much back and forth, with poll workers telling him he was unable to vote this election, and calling the county election board, this voter was contacted by election officials who confirmed he would be able to vote and cast a regular ballot. While we never ascertained the reasoning for this confusion, we were successful in getting election officials’ attention on this matter and it was resolved. This was great news for this voter, his wife, and other[s] in his community who also received similar notices.”
Expand voter registration options including online registration.
Expand vote by mail to all Texans.
Expand 24-hour and curbside voting across the state.
Regulate and establish a ballot curing process
Combat partisan distribution of voting machines, polling places etc.
Advocate for measures to prohibit the presence of armed individuals at or near polling places.
In a typical election year, Kentucky offers limited options and hours for voting. In April 2020, Kentucky also implemented a more restrictive photo identification requirement for voters, which was passed by the legislature over the Governor’s veto. In response to the pandemic, the Governor and Secretary of State reached a bipartisan agreement for the primary election. The primary was delayed from May 19 to June 23, and all registered voters were eligible to receive mail ballots, and early voting (“absentee in person”) was implemented. Early voting was limited to the hours of 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. from Monday through Friday, beginning eight days before the election, in Jefferson County. The Kentucky Board of Elections also allowed counties to set up absentee ballot drop boxes at county courthouses.
No Early Voting *
Strict Voter ID Law
Limited Vote-by-Mail *
Photo ID required for Mail Ballot
Shortage of Poll Workers/Closing large number of Polling Locations
*Laws/rules changed due to COVID-19 pandemic
Election Protection advocates filed a lawsuit in May to require Kentucky to extend the primary voting COVID-19 related changes to the general election. As a result of advocacy, Kentucky expanded its early voting period to three weeks, including on Saturdays. Any registered voter concerned about contracting COVID-19 was eligible to request an absentee ballot.
Through our partnership with More Than A Vote, approximately 100 Kentucky residents applied to become poll workers for the general election
Through our partnership with Forward Justice and Poor Peoples Campaign, we jointly trained 284 volunteers to conduct local poll monitoring and voter education.
Voter education and information via text sent to 3,317 voters.
Voter education and PPE mailed to 10,395 voters.
Voter education materials mailed to 25,397 voters.
On Election Day, poll monitors in Kentucky submitted reports on the following issues:
52 reports of long lines to vote
75 reports of confusing and/or inadequate signage
33 reports on the potentially intimidating presence of law enforcement
14 reports of voter intimidation activity
74 reports on accessibility and/or parking issues
Ensuring competent election administration continues to be a serious problem in Kentucky, as one volunteer’s story shows: “[A v]oter had not received her absentee ballot and the poll workers turned her away. We told the voter to ask the poll worker to cancel her absentee ballot or request a provisional ballot. She did, and was able to vote, but said the poll worker ‘was not happy about it.’ It took about 20 minutes from the time we encouraged her to try again to the time she was able to actually vote.”
Because so many of the issues identified included signage and poll worker education, election administration advocacy to Kentucky counties may result in improved operations in the future.
Because Kentucky has some of the shortest polling hours in the country, work with local partners to expand the polling closure time of 6 p.m. will be important.
Shortly after Louis DeJoy was appointed Postmaster General, the USPS imposed changes in its mail delivery policies bypassing legally required procedures to ensure accountability and an opportunity for public comment. These changes led to widespread delays in mail delivery across the nation when it mattered most: during a global pandemic when people were relying on the mail for medications, stimulus checks, voting, and more.
LDF and co-counsel Public Citizen filed a lawsuit to reverse the policies that led to widespread delays and to ensure that mail-in ballots would be delivered on time to be counted. Although the court granted a preliminary injunction in our favor in October, the USPS did not immediately comply and substantial mail delays persisted. This led to multiple court orders requiring USPS to implement measures to ensure that ballots were delivered in a timely manner and to provide the court with data about the status of its efforts. Ultimately, our suit resulted in USPS implementing court-ordered “extraordinary measures” for the timely delivery of ballots.
Despite this order, however, the plaintiffs had to return to court four times (including on Election Day) for emergency orders to compel the USPS to comply and prioritize delivery of mail-in ballots.
On December 17 2021, LDF and Public Citizen announced a settlement in the historic case. The settlement ensures that it will undertake similar efforts to prioritize the delivery of ballots in future national elections.
On the last day of early voting in Alamance County, North Carolina, 200 peaceful marchers and prospective voters were walking from a local church to a nearby poll site. Without provocation or warning, officers from the Graham Police Department and Alamance County Sheriff’s Office repeatedly deployed pepper spray into the crowd—among them young children, elderly individuals, and those with disabilities—just seconds after they had knelt in silence for eight minutes and 46 seconds in remembrance of the police killing of George Floyd.
Instead of voting as they had planned, the marchers were forced to flee the area to protect themselves and their families. Fearful of returning to the area that day, some prospective voters were unable to register to vote by the 3 p.m. deadline and therefore could not vote on Election Day.
On November 2, 2020, LDF and co-counsel filed a lawsuit against the City of Graham and Alamance County challenging this unwarranted use of force and intimidation of prospective voters. The lawsuit asserts assert claims for violation of Section 11(b) of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, Section 1985(3) of the KKK Act, and the 1st and 4th Amendments of the U.S. Constitution.
In June 2021, a settlement was reached in the case.
Shortly after the election, we filed a lawsuit against President Trump and his campaign challenging their coordinated efforts to disenfranchise Black voters in Michigan by intimidating, threatening, and coercing state and local elections officials in an effort to pressure them not to certify or count votes cast in Detroit. We later filed an amended complaint challenging similar conduct in other states and adding the Republican National Committee as a defendant.
Our action seeks to protect the integrity of votes cast by Black voters in Detroit from the president’s attempts to overturn the will of voters expressed at the ballot box.
The lawsuit claims that both the president and his campaign are in violation of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Exerting pressure on state and local officials not to count or certify voters is prohibited by Section 11(b) because it involves conduct that “intimidate[s], threaten[s], or coerce[s], or attempt[s] to intimidate, threaten, or coerce” people involved in “aiding any person to vote or attempt to vote.”
The lawsuit alleges that the defendants encouraged their supporters to slow and attempt to stop vote counting efforts in tightly contested states, pressured state and local officials not to certify election results, raised baseless challenges to the validity of legally cast ballots, and engaged media campaigns designed to intimidate and misinform voters and election officials
• Increase Americans’ access to the ballot box by expanding early and absentee voting • Establish automatic voter registration • Limit efforts to purge voter rolls • Prohibit disinformation about elections • Increase penalties for voter intimidation • Replace partisan gerrymandering with non-partisan commissions • Restore the voting rights of people who were formerly incarcerated • Introduce new campaign finance reforms.
• Enable states to modernize their voting equipment • Enable states to recruit and fully train poll workers • Require the Elections Assistance Commission to ensure states are meeting minimal elections administration standards, and that they have adequate contingency plans in place so voting can continue despite weather, power outages, or unforeseen events such as the coronavirus pandemic.
