Know Your Rights!: Voter's Rights

The Civil Rights Division enforces federal laws that protect you from discrimination based on your race, color, national origin, disability status, sex, religion, familial status, or loss of other constitutional rights.

Well before Election Day, voters in Texas and North Carolina had already started reporting facing harassment. The federal government prohibits such acts of intimidation, but what that entails isn’t always clear.

A peer-reviewed article by Kyle Raze for the Economic inquiry, 2022.

A peer-reviewed article by Patrick J. Roche for the American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law, 2019.

A peer-reviewed article by R. Kelly Garrett for the Public Library of Science, PLoS, March 2019.

A peer-reviewed article by Ben Pryor, Rebekah Herrick, and James A. Davis for the Political Science Quarterly, Spring 2019.

U.S. election laws date back to Article 1 of the Constitution. This gave states the responsibility of overseeing federal elections. Many Constitutional amendments and federal laws to protect voting rights have been passed since then.

Who Can Vote?
You can vote in U.S. elections if you: ...

This system can be used to submit an application online for new registration or to make changes to your existing registration record or to prefill a voter registration application form. The following voter registration application forms are also available for download if you do not wish to use this system.

Find Out if You Need to Bring an ID to Vote, Photo ID versus Non-Photo ID,
Procedures for Voting Without ID, Name or Address Mismatch, and First Time Voters

A total of 36 states have laws requesting or requiring voters to show some form of identification at the polls, 35 of which are in force in 2020.

Absentee voting (aka “mail-in voting” and “by-mail voting”) is conducted by mail-in ballot before the day of Election Day. All states will mail a ballot to voters if certain conditions are met.

The Florida Department of State’s Division of Elections provides administrative support to the Secretary of State, Florida’s Chief Election Officer, to ensure that Florida has fair and accurate elections. The Division consists of three bureaus - the Bureau of Election Records, the Bureau of Voter Registration Services, and the Bureau of Voting Systems Certification.

We handle all federal, state, county and municipal elections. We also provide election services and assistance to municipalities, School Districts, Special Taxing Districts, Community Council Districts, and Community Development Districts in Miami-Dade County.

View information about upcoming and past elections.

Percent Voting by Race and Age: Presidential Elections.

In election years, the Current Population Survey collects data on reported voting and registration, and later reports stats by turnout, age, race and origin.

The Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, created in 1957 by the enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1957, works to uphold the civil and constitutional rights of all Americans, particularly some of the most vulnerable members of our society.

Learn more about how to exercise your voting rights, resist voter intimidation efforts, and access disability-related accommodations and language assistance at the polls.

The Andrew Goodman Foundation makes young Voices and Votes a Powerful Force in Democracy.
We are witness to the rise of a diverse and connected new citizenry, one that can forever transform our society and our world for the better.

The Brennan Center for Justice is a nonpartisan law and policy institute.
We strive to uphold the values of democracy. We stand for equal justice and the rule of law. We work to craft and advance reforms that will make American democracy work, for all.

Campaign Legal Center (CLC) advances democracy through law, fighting for every American’s right to participate in the democratic process. CLC uses tactics such as litigation, policy advocacy, communications and partnerships to win victories that result in a more transparent, accountable and inclusive democracy.

Common Cause is a nonpartisan, grassroots organization dedicated to upholding the core values of American democracy. We work to create open, honest, and accountable government that serves the public interest; promote equal rights, opportunity, and representation for all; and empower all people to make their voices heard in the political process.

FairVote is a nonpartisan champion of electoral reforms that give voters greater choice, a stronger voice, and a representative democracy that works for all Americans.

The League is proud to be nonpartisan, neither supporting nor opposing candidates or political parties at any level of government, but always working on vital issues of concern to members and the public.

Let America Vote is leading the fight for Voting Rights. Extreme voter suppression laws that disproportionately impact people based on their race or ethnicity, gender, age, or income are popping up all over the country at an alarming pace

Rock the Vote is a nonpartisan nonprofit dedicated to building the political power of young people.
For 30 years, Rock the Vote has revolutionized the way we use pop culture, music, art, and technology to engage young people in politics and build our collective power.

Vote.org is the largest 501(c)(3) non-profit, non-partisan voting registration and get out the vote (GOTV) technology platform in America. It has registered more than 3.3 million new voters, verified 8.2 million voters’ registration status, and has helped over 30 million website users by providing registration links and deadlines, polling location details, and other essential voting information for each state.

When Reconstruction ended in 1877, states across the South implemented new laws to restrict the voting rights of African Americans. These included onerous requirements of owning property, paying poll taxes, and passing literacy or civics exams.

Congress passed the Voting Rights Act of 1965 which aimed to increase the number of people registered to vote in areas where there was a record of previous discrimination.