Perkins School for the Blind will be testing a digital voting system in order to help make the voting process as accessible as possible for people who have disabilities. To do this, they are conducting a “mock election” on the Perkins Campus in Watertown, MA on Monday March 21 through Wednesday March 23. As you know, accessibility remains a major barrier to voting for people with disabilities and with your help we can try to ensure that every vote counts! You will receive a $25 Amazon gift card for your participation.
Who is eligible:
People with disabilities who are eligible to vote (at least 18 years old and a U.S. citizen). Participants do not need to be registered. Participants can speak Spanish or English.
When:
Monday, March 21, 9:30 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Tuesday, March 22, 9:30 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Wednesday, March 23, 9:30 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Where:
In Person at the Perkins School in Watertown
How to sign up:
Please complete this brief questionnaire if you are interested in helping to make voting more accessible to millions of Americans! Someone will then follow up with you to schedule a day and time that is convenient for you (it should take no more than 15-30 minutes). To ensure everyone’s safety, facial coverings are required and social distancing practices will be in place during the events. Please email Gary Aussant at gary.aussant@perkins.org if you have questions.
AAPD Voting Recommendations
Please Read!
AAPD submitted comments that provide feedback in response to the public draft of the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s (NIST) Recommendations for Addressing Barriers to Private and Independent Voting for People with Disabilities.
Read the full recommendations document.
This document should also be read by Massachusetts officials.
2021 Disability Vote Summit
The National Disability Rights Network and the American Association of People with Disabilities will be hosting the 2021 Disability Vote Summit on Tuesday, September 14, 2021 from 12:00 – 4:00 PM EST. At the virtual Summit, we will explore:
- The power of the disability vote
- Lessons learned from 2020 turnout
- How to use data to mobilize the disability vote
Confirmed presenters include representatives from the National Disability Rights Network, the National Federation of the Blind, SABE Go Voter Project, and more! Join national disability advocates, state and local organizers, policymakers, and others who are working to get out the disability vote.
If you have any questions, please contact Lilian Aluri at laluri@aapd.com or Jack Rosen at jack.rosen@ndrn.org.
Visit AAPD’s website to learn more about National Disability Voter Registration Week (NDVRW), which is from September 13-20, and how you can get involved.
American Sign Language interpreters and CART live-captioning services will be available for this event.
National Disability Voter Registration Week 2021
Updated August 16, 2021.
National Disability Voter Registration Week (NDVRW) is September 13-20, 2021. Are you ready to get the word out?
AAPD / REVUP Training Video
Make sure you see Marlene Sallo of the Disability Law Center around 40:41 and Colleen Flanagan of Disability Action for America around 48:51. Marlene speaks about the importance of partnerships to the REVUP MA efforts. Colleen introduces Relational Organizing, and talks about how to apply this technique to registering people with disabilities. AAPD REVUP Zoom Meeting
Sign up as a partner for NDVRW!
Use this sign-up form to let us know you want to join NDVRW.
Start Planning
- Find local community and organization partners.
- Decide on your event or initiative and plan the details.
- Tell us about your event so we can add it to our website!
- Gather materials and volunteers as needed.
- Publicize your event or initiative.
- Track your success (for example, number of voters registered, event attendees, materials distributed, events hosted) and share it with us afterwards.
Use AAPD / REV UP toolkits and resources!
- NDVRW Partner Toolkit (also attached as a PDF)
- NDVRW Social Media Toolkit (also attached as a PDF)
- When We All Vote Resources (also attached as a PDF, short link: weall.vote/revupresources)
- Online Voter Registration Tool (short link: weall.vote/revup)
- NDVRW Training Recording & Transcript
- Tuesdays with Tootle (voting conversations hosted by life-long Georgia advocate Stancil Tootle, shared during first training)
Visit aapd.com/advocacy/voting/national-disability-voter-registration-week/ for ideas and tool kits.
REV UP National Call on June 24 at 3:30pm EST
Join the AAPD (American Association of People with Disabilities) upcoming REV UP National Call on June 24 at 3:30pm EST! The REV UP team hosted several webinars this spring, and we are excited to resume our quarterly meeting to connect face to face (virtually) with the REV UP network.
The REV UP National Call will take place on zoom and will be a time for advocates, partners, and organizers in the REV UP network across the country to share updates on how they’ve been building the power of the disability vote. We will also discuss plans for the National Disability Voter Registration Week, September 13-17 and 20. Register for the REV UP National Call.
If you would like to share updates about how you or your organization has been engaged in voting work or if you have particular questions you would like us to answer, please contact Lilian Aluri at laluri@aapd.com or let us know in your registration form. The call will include ASL interpreting and CART, and to request additional accommodations, you can also email Lilian Aluri at laluri@aapd.com.
- Meeting: REV UP National Call
- Date: June 24, 2021, 3:30pm EST
- Zoom Registration Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYqf-mvpjkrH9FK2yYvOYbBzHjV190Oa7vL
- Zoom Passcode: 522866
- Accommodations: ASL interpreters, CART
We hope you will join us and Happy Juneteenth!
The REV UP National call will include American Sign Language interpreting and CART captioning.
REV UP Webinar last March
In case you missed it, you can finally see the video from the AAPD Event: The Disability Vote in 2020.
Visit the event page at www.aapd.com/rev-up-webinar-disability-vote-in-2020, scroll down and watch the video or read the transcript.
Going forward, the many new restrictive voting bills will have an impact on the disability vote.
National Disability Voter Registration Week 2021
REV UP Announcement from AAPD.com – April 1, 2021
Since 2016, the American Association of People with Disabilities has hosted National Disability Voter Registration Week, a week that brings together disability and voting rights advocates across the U.S. to celebrate and grow the power of the disability vote. National Disability Voter Registration Week (NDVRW) usually takes place in July every year and features voter registration drives, celebrations, trainings, and digital outreach centered on the disability vote.
We have an exciting announcement about National Disability Voter Registration Week (NDVRW) in 2021. After talking with each other and with REV UP organizers and partners, we have decided to shift NDVRW from the third week of July to the third week of September. This means that the 2021 dates for NDVRW are now September 13-17, 2021. Hosting NDVRW in September will align better with when REV UP organizers and partners, as well as the general public, engage in voting and elections. Here’s why:
- Many organizers will have more time to participate in NDVRW in September. In July, many people in our community are busy planning and participating in events marking the anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, conferences, and summer programs.
- In September, NDVRW will take place before many general election voter registration deadlines, and the urgency of November elections may increase overall engagement in NDVRW.
- NDVRW will also build excitement in our community for National Voter Registration Day which takes place the following week in September.
With the ongoing attacks on voting rights in states across the country, our mission of building the power of the disability vote has new challenges. We are eager to continue to partner with all of you this year and during NDVRW in September to build the power of the disability vote. So far, organizers have shared positive feedback for this date change, and if you have any additional questions or feedback, reach out to Lilian Aluri at laluri@aapd.com.
Summary: The American Association of People with Disabilities leads a week of talking with our communities about voting and making sure people with disabilities are ready to vote in the next election. This week is called National Disability Voter Registration Week, and it is usually in July. In the future, National Disability Voter Registration Week will be in September. In 2021, National Disability Voter Registration Week is September 13-17. Changing the date of National Disability Voter Registration Week will make it easier for people to get involved and help out.
America Goes to the Polls 2020
From Nonprofit VOTE:
America Goes to the Polls 2020.pdf
America Goes to the Polls 2020 is based on the final certified voter turnout collected by the U.S. Elections Project. The report provides the official state rankings in voter turnout and turnout growth compared to the last presidential election in 2016. This ranking provides insights into the impact of election policies on state-by-state voter turnout.
Executive Order on Promoting Access to Voting
From the White House – March 7, 2021
Visit whitehouse.gov for this expansive Executive Order, from President Joe Biden, on voting access. The order addresses all aspects of voting, from registration to voting, and considers all barriers.
Below is the beginning of Section 1: Purpose, and Section 7: Ensuring Access for Voters with Disabilities
Section 1. Purpose. The right to vote is the foundation of American democracy. Free and fair elections that reflect the will of the American people must be protected and defended. But many Americans, especially people of color, confront significant obstacles to exercising that fundamental right. These obstacles include difficulties with voter registration, lack of election information, and barriers to access at polling places. For generations, Black voters and other voters of color have faced discriminatory policies and other obstacles that disproportionally affect their communities. These voters remain more likely to face long lines at the polls and are disproportionately burdened by voter identification laws and limited opportunities to vote by mail. Limited access to language assistance remains a barrier for many voters. People with disabilities continue to face barriers to voting and are denied legally required accommodations in exercising their fundamental rights and the ability to vote privately and independently. Members of our military serving overseas, as well as other American citizens living abroad, also face challenges to exercising their fundamental right to vote.
…
Sec. 7. Ensuring Equal Access for Voters with Disabilities. Within 270 days of the date of this order, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) within the Department of Commerce shall evaluate the steps needed to ensure that the online Federal Voter Registration Form is accessible to people with disabilities. During that period, NIST, in consultation with the Department of Justice, the Election Assistance Commission, and other agencies, as appropriate, shall also analyze barriers to private and independent voting for people with disabilities, including access to voter registration, voting technology, voting by mail, polling locations, and poll worker training. By the end of the 270-day period, NIST shall publish recommendations regarding both the Federal Voter Registration Form and the other barriers it has identified.
AAPD REVUP – The Disability Vote in 2020.
The Disability Vote in 2020
A record number of voters overcame many different barriers to cast their ballot in the 2020 elections. New data on the disability vote in 2020 provides insights into how people with disabilities voted and what barriers continue to create a gap in voter turnout between people with and without disabilities.
Dr. Lisa Schur and Dr. Doug Kruse, researchers at Rutgers University, shared key insights on the experience of voters with disabilities in the 2020 elections. Dr. Schur and Dr. Kruse’s research on the disability vote in 2020 was commissioned and supported by the Election Assistance Commission.
This event was hosted by the American Association of People with Disabilities’ REV UP Campaign, which launched in 2016, and is composed of state and national coalitions that work to advance the Disability Vote. REV UP stands for Register! Educate! Vote! Use your Power! REV UP’s mission is to foster civic engagement and protect the voting rights of Americans with disabilities.
Event Recap
- Watch the entire Zoom event
- Download the even powerpoint Presentation: AAPD-RevUp-presentation-on-disability-and-voting-accessibility-3-18-21.pptx
- Download a docx Transcript from the event: Transcript-3.18.21-The-Disability-Vote-in-2020.docx
Resources from the Event
Advocacy Opportunities
- StopJimCrow2.com (Fair Fight Action)
- State Bill Tracker Search (Voting Rights Lab)
- Share and Gather Voting Stories (Fair Fight Action)
- Phone Banking to Collect Voter Stories (Fair Fight Action)
Newsletters & Organizations to Connect With
- AAPD’s REV UP Voting Campaign
- Fair Fight Launches its Disability Council
- Connect with All Voting is Local’s State Programs
- Find Your Local Protection & Advocacy Agency
- Sign up for Fair Fight’s Newsletters
- Sign up for the Leadership Conference’s Newsletter
- Sign up for The Lever (Voting Rights Lab)
- Sign up for The Markup (Voting Rights Lab)