The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) launched a new voting rights microsite that serves as an online hub for it’s multiple streams of voting rights work.

This work is especially important this year, as COVID-19 has led to various changes in state elections rules.

The microsite features LDF’s two voter education and advocacy projects –Prepared to Vote (PTV) and Voting Rights Defender (VRD); current voting rights litigation; our voting rights policy platforms; and comprehensive information about the 2020 Census and subsequent redistricting process.

The microsite, which can be accessed here, was developed by LDF’s Thurgood Marshall Institute in advance of the November elections to allow voters and voting rights advocates to easily find the most up-to-date information regarding Election Day preparation.

This includes specific voter registration and polling place guidelines for targeted states — Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, South Carolina, and Texas — as well as tools for identifying and combatting voter suppression practices.

The microsite is also forward-looking as LDF prepares for 2021 legislative redistricting — the process of redrawing new congressional and state legislative districts — which will determine the distribution of political power and governmental funding for the next decade.

“We are thrilled to launch LDF’s voting rights microsite today. As we approach the November election, it is more critical than ever that voters — especially voters of color — and voting rights advocates have the information they need to ensure equal and safe access to the ballot box,” said Janell Byrd-Chichester, director of LDF’s Thurgood Marshall Institute.

The microsite allows the public to engage directly with LDF and access critical voting rights resources, including:  

• Volunteer Sign Ups: Individuals can sign up to volunteer with our PTV or VRD programs.
• Report Voter Suppression: The public can report voter suppression issues, such as polling place closures, confusing ballot instructions, voter intimidation tactics, and faulty voting equipment.
• Register to Vote: Individuals can use an online form to quickly and easily register to vote.
• Share Your Story: Individuals can share their voting stories to help us know what is happening on the ground on Election Day.
• Check Your Community’s Census Response Rate: The 2020 Census will determine the distribution of political power and government funding for the next decade. The public can use an online tool to track response rates in their localities.

LDF’s PTV project supports Black political participation and works to ensure that voters are prepared to submit an absentee ballot/vote by mail or head to the polls on Election Day or for early voting. The project engages volunteers to conduct on-the-ground, non-partisan voter education about voter registration, polling place locations, voter identification materials (where needed), and COVID-19 safety measures for in-person voting.

Launched this year, our VRD project was created to ensure that tactics to disenfranchise Black voters are quickly identified and addressed ahead of the November election.

The project tracks and responds to voter suppression efforts in targeted jurisdictions to protect the right to vote. Critically, our response teams work in close collaboration with local community partners to combat voter suppression through advocacy, public exposure/media, and litigation, if necessary.