Voter suppression is any strategy to discourage people from voting or create barriers to voters’ access to the ballot.
How is disinformation used in efforts to suppress the vote?
How are racism and opposition to a more diverse electorate key factors in voter suppression efforts?
The United States has a long history of voter suppression – especially against Black Americans – from denials and obstacles to violent repression. A central goal of the Civil Rights Movement was ensuring Black Americans could exercise their right to vote. And this movement for voting access often faced violent opposition. But voter suppression is not simply a historical fact.
Strategies to suppress voting continue to undermine our democracy today and have increased over the past two decades in response to political participation becoming more pluralistic. From purging voter rolls, restrictive identification rules, redistricting efforts, limited polling places and inadequate voting machines in some communities, threats to election workers and many other changing rules and requirements, these efforts create obstacles to voting, especially for communities of color.
“Don’t Let Down Your Guard: Learn How Voter Access Laws Affect You in 2024”
As the Southern Poverty Law Center continues to encourage voter turnout through its The South’s Got Now | Decidimos campaign, this article includes information about some laws Southern voters need to watch out for this election year.
For example, in 2024, Alabama passed laws that can make voting absentee harder and expanded the list of felony convictions that disqualify a person from voting. And a 2022 Florida law “mandates that vote-by-mail ballot requests expire every two years.” The crucial 2024 election is the first that will be affected by this law. In addition, voter purging efforts in some states, such as Alabama, target naturalized citizens under the rationale of removing noncitizens from registration and further fuel anti-immigrant sentiment with false narratives about noncitizen voters. And Georgia’s governor recently signed new laws that create challenges to voting rights and access to the ballot.
Many of the recent attempts at suppressing voting are responses to voter turnout in the 2020 election. The ability of states to create new barriers increased with the Supreme Court’s 2013 decision in Shelby County v. Holder, which removed a key provision of the 1965 Voting Rights Act (VRA). The provision had required states with a history of discriminating against voters of color to be cleared by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) before changing their voting laws. The provision in the VRA had offered important protection against voter disenfranchisement, with the DOJ objecting to more than 1,000 “discriminatory voting changes between 1965 and 2006.”
Leading up to the 2020 elections, crowds of voters in several states stood in long lines for hours during the deadly pandemic. More Black people – disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic – were turning out to vote despite risk of infection because they understood what was at stake in the election. Instead of acknowledging voters’ commitment to the democratic process across the South, new laws seek to restrict engagement in the political system.
Following the 2020 presidential election, 440 bills were introduced nationally aimed at restricting voting rights, largely in Black and Brown communities. This trend continued in 2023 with 356 bills introduced. Understanding voter suppression strategies is an important step in addressing efforts to disenfranchise targeted groups.
Recognizing Voter Suppression
The following is a summary of actions that aim to restrict voter access.
Purging Voter Rolls
Many states have conducted “voter purging,” an effort to delete outdated or ineligible voters, which can purge eligible voters as well and make them unable to vote. Done under the guise of updating voter rolls, purging utilizes characteristics that target groups such as Black and Brown communities, people experiencing poverty and naturalized U.S. citizens.
Weaponizing False Narratives About Voter Fraud
Extensive research indicates that voter fraud is exceedingly rare. Disinformation about voter fraud is designed to create fear and distrust in our government processes. Claims of voter fraud after elections, especially those elections where more progressive-minded officials prevailed, fuel some state legislatures’ efforts to pass restrictive voting laws that aim to make voting harder for targeted communities.
Requiring Restrictive Voter ID Rules
Restrictive voter ID laws attempt to disenfranchise voters by requiring only specific identification. Obtaining the limited forms of identification that states might require can be difficult for those who cannot get time off work, find transportation or find it difficult to access these identifications.
Some of the groups hurt by these laws are people experiencing poverty or who earn low incomes, individuals with disabilities or elderly citizens. In other words, some people’s right to vote is inaccessible due to unjust or ableist systems. Today, 36 states require or request identification to vote.
Lack of Adequate Polling Places
Closures of polling places, defective or inadequate voting machines and failure to allocate resources, particularly in Black and Brown communities, are all efforts that make voting difficult.
Excluding Formerly Incarcerated People
Excluding people who are or who were incarcerated, have a felony conviction on their record or who are currently in jail pre-conviction are among those who are barred from voting in some states. To see voting laws related to felony convictions by state, check out this interactive map by the Brennan Center for Justice.
Ignoring Language Barriers
While there is a language minority provision in the Voting Rights Act of 1965, too many people who do not speak English are excluded from the electoral process. Non-English speakers often are not offered support to help navigate the voting process.
Misinformation and Disinformation
Misinformation and disinformation are common on the internet and social media. Campaigns to encourage people to vote a certain way, or to trick people into voting at the wrong place or time, are among the many ways both elected officials and citizens can also suppress the vote.
To overcome voter suppression, being informed about election and voting processes is critical. Importantly, voters need to pay attention to deadlines. Long before an election begins, research where your polling location is, what forms of ID you will need to vote, and seek information about early voting and voting by mail.
Even if you’re registered to vote, check your status online or with your local election office, as election officials often purge voter rolls. It’s especially important to make sure you are registered if you’ve made recent changes, such as an address or name change or if you’ve moved out of state.
Finally, know that you have power and voice for change. Find ways to get involved that suit your needs and community. Your involvement is worth its weight in gold and will help strengthen our local, state and national communities.
Civil Rights activist Jo Ann Bland, who participated in the Selma to Montgomery march known as Bloody Sunday when she was 11 years old, reminds us: “How hard fought to get the vote was. And people died. People died for us to have the rights we have today, beaten and killed.”
We should never take for granted our rights and our responsibilities to engage in civic action and vote in every election – local and national. As we consider voter suppression in today’s election process, Bland’s question about our voting rights resonates: “If it was not valuable, why are people always trying to take it away from you?”
Reflection and Action
1. You cannot strengthen democracy with cynicism. Believe that change can happen.
Disillusionment and despair are tools for voter suppression. Those who wish to disenfranchise you want you to think your vote doesn’t matter – so that you do not exercise it. No matter the election, never forfeit your vote. Your participation can help bring about the change you seek.
2. Stay informed, share information.
Review state and local voting laws to stay informed about any changes that may affect you or your community. Become knowledgeable about media literacy and resist disinformation. Share what you learn with others so they can be prepared to vote.
3. Advocate to strengthen voter rights and access to the ballot, and volunteer to help others.
Call or write to your representatives to urge them to improve access and strengthen voter rights. Volunteer to help others register, navigate voter ID laws, and get to the polls. The logistics of Election Day can add barriers for many voters. Help those in your community access the polls.
4. Talk to friends and family about the issues that affect you.
People sometimes say it is unwise to talk about politics with the ones we love. However, because that love exists between you, you have a foundation to share concerns and shape opinions. Share how policy affects you personally.
Resources:
- What to Do When You See Voter Intimidation from the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC)
- The South’s Got Now | Decidimos from the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC)
- 72 Forms of Voter Suppression from the Voting Rights Alliance
- Know Your Rights: Voting Rights from the ACLU
- Report Potential Voter Suppression from the NAACP Legal Defense Fund
- Report Voting Issues from U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division
- Report intimidation to local election officials. Offices will be open on Election Day.