2016 IN REVIEW Our mission is to eliminate barriers to voting and improve election administration across the United States. Working alongside other national and state groups, FELN works to make the processes of voter registration, voting, and election administration as accessible as possible for every American and has a special focus on student and minority voters.
TABLE OF CONTENTS A LETTER FROM OUR PRESIDENT STRATEGIC LITIGATION CAMPUS VOTE PROJECT NEW INITIATIVES EXPERT, TRUSTED, ELECTION MATERIALS THANKS TO OUR 2016 SUPPORTERS 3 4 7 13 14 16
A LETTER FROM OUR PRESIDENT Friends, The day after the 2016 election, I was filled with contradictory emotions. On the one hand, I was proud of the Fair Elections Legal Network and its work easing the path to the ballot for tens of thousands of Americans. On the other hand, we witnessed the damaging effects years of concerted efforts to create obstacles to voting has had on our democracy. At FELN, we believe full participation in the democratic process fulfills the promise of America, and the individual promise of each citizen-participant. The act of voting connects every American to one another, crossing boundaries of economic position, geography, race and other divides. We also believe being a registered voter is an important first step toward engagement in the full civic and economic opportunities of our nation. That s but one reason our dedicated team at the Campus Vote Project works year-round with school partners to institutionalize a culture of voting and, throughout 2016, reached tens of thousands of students by delivering voting information to first-time voters, many from immigrant and low-income communities. It s why the FELN legal team helped partners in the African American, Hispanic and Asian-Pacific Islander communities with information and strategies to maximize voter turnout. Last year on the legal front, we helped to strike down a law that had erected barriers for naturalized citizens, affirmed another that guaranteed the right for 17-year-olds to vote in presidential primaries, and stopped a regulation to deny the right to vote by absentee ballot. Now, our work is more important than ever, and we need your help. In 2017, as efforts to pass voter suppression legislation continue in some instances, aggressively we will widen our use of strategic legal approaches to protect voters. We must push for new reforms and challenge restrictions on every front legislatively, through the media, and in the courts to guarantee voting access expands. We must ensure young people become more aware that our political system is a way to create change, rather than viewing it as corrupt and irrelevant. There s no doubt we will be very busy in 2017. Our partners and policy makers nationwide will continue relying on our legal analysis to replace voter suppression with voter expansion. Our essential training and voter information materials are basic and essential tools in the fight for full participation in our democracy. Teaching more young people to be lifetime citizens and voters while understanding the role of elected officials at all levels, could not be a more urgent mission. Yes, our plans are ambitious, but this is no time to sit back. Instead, this is the time to stand up, speak out, and confront the challenge with everything we have. With the continuing and generous investment of our supporters, our vital efforts will surely make a difference. We are grateful to have you standing with us at this critical time. Sincerely, Robert Brandon President 3
FAIR ELECTIONS LEGAL NETWORK LITIGATION: OUR UNIQUE APPROACH Given the threats to voting rights publicly discussed right after the 2016 general election and, more recently, in the days following the 2017 presidential inauguration, litigation is now a more important tool than ever to defend and protect our citizens right to vote. We have investigated under-the-radar violations of the right to vote and have sued to enforce federal and state law requirements in novel and economical ways. For example, we ve found that equal protection claims that seek to expand the franchise or extend convenience measures offered to some voters but not others are seldom pursued. But this approach to voting rights litigation can expand access to the ballot without the need for the enormous resources required to prove discrimination or impact based on race. In fact, all too often, state election officials treat similar classes of voters differently, or they create processes that produce burdens on the fundamental right to vote without justification. Additionally, other provisions of the U.S. Constitution provide alternative means to attack voter disenfranchisement measures. We do not have a single approach to litigation and this frees us to discover and utilize new methods. 4
By studying state election codes, including ID requirements and voter registration procedures, FELN has identified opportunities to expand equal access to the ballot. We force state officials to explain why they treat similar groups of eligible voters differently and obtain court orders requiring them to stop such discriminatory practices. In 2016, we achieved this in the following cases: LOUISIANA In VAYLA et al v. Schedler, FELN filed litigation that successfully challenged a 142-year-old law which required naturalized citizens to appear in person to prove their citizenship for voting purposes. This case resulted in the full repeal of the law within weeks of filing. OHIO We won the right to vote in the 2016 presidential primary for 17-year-olds who would turn 18 by the general election, reversing efforts by the Secretary of State to block these voters from casting a ballot. This case was completed in a week. WISCONSIN A well-researched letter matched with the threat of litigation compelled the Wisconsin Elections Commission to reverse its policy and stop rejecting thousands of absentee ballots with a meaningless technical defect in their witness addresses. Ultimately there was no need to file the lawsuit we had prepared on behalf of the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin. FELN also filed important Amicus Curiae briefs to add a unique perspective to cases, including: Supporting the Virginia Governor s decision to streamline the process to restoring voting rights to ex-felons and coming close to victory by nearly persuading a majority of the Supreme Court of Virginia to dismiss the lawsuit. Challenging the illegal action of the Election Assistance Commission s Executive Director to require proof of citizenship with the federal registration form in Alabama, Georgia and Kansas. Our brief argued for an immediate remedy even though Election Day was fast approaching and helped the plaintiffs to secure such relief. 5
Today, FELN s lawyers in addition to staying attuned to the problems voters actually face on the ground are working to identify potential legal challenges and plaintiffs. This requires close attention to the details of each state s election administration system, and the resources we provide covering registration and voting in all 50 states have laid the foundation for developing strategies like those identified above. In fact, right now there are several potential cases we are researching that if successful could protect registration and voting rights for hundreds of thousands of voters in several states. 6
CAMPUS VOTE PROJECT FELN s Campus Vote Project works with universities, community colleges, faculty, students and election officials to reduce barriers to student voting and institutionalize reforms that empower students to register and vote. We leverage programs implemented by campus administrators and faculty that can reach all enrolled students. 7
CAMPUS VOTE PROJECT 2016 BY THE NUMBERS COMBINED STUDENT ENROLLMENT OF 1.3 MILLION 6,082 HOURS OF DEMOCRATIC ENGAGEMENT WORK COMPLETED BY DEMOCRACY FELLOWS ALONGSIDE ADMINISTRATORS, FACULTY AND STUDENT LEADERSHIP THOUSANDS OF PLEDGES TO VOTE GATHERED OVER 100,000 VISITORS TO OUR STUDENT VOTING GUIDES WORKED ON 103 CAMPUSES 54 DEMOCRACY FELLOWS - RECRUITED AND TRAINED 12,320 VOTING INFORMATION POSTERS DISTRIBUTED 1.7 MILLION DIGITAL AD IMPRESSIONS SERVED PRODUCED STUDENT VOTING GUIDES FOR ALL 50 STATES 8
[The CVP Democracy Fellowship] was an amazing opportunity to be more involved with the democratic process of this country and to share the privilege it is to vote. PAULA DECAMPOS UNC-C, CHARLOTTE, NC The best aspect of the program is how it helps the entire student body by breaking barriers to voting, and how it helps the democracy fellows grow as leaders and expand their knowledge about the way our political system functions both at the local and federal level. ABRAHAN CID MDC, MIAMI, FL The flexibility Campus Vote Project has offered our Democracy Fellows and university is the reason why we have been so successful in our voter engagement initiatives... Without the support from CVP, our efforts would be greatly limited, decreasing our ability to address access, registration, turnout, and education of voters at ECU. SUZANNAH GRUBB LOTT ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, LEADERSHIP AND CIVIC ENGAGEMENT EAST CAROLINA UNIVERSITY 9
CAMPUS VOTE PROJECT 2016 ON THE GROUND DELIVERING ACCURATE VOTER REGISTRATION AND VOTING INFORMATION - Campus-specific voter information palm cards and posters - Nonpartisan content for websites, email and social media campaigns, and campus media - Webinars and trainings on tactics for youth engagement and on state-specific laws INVESTING IN CAMPUSES: LEADING DEMOCRATIC ENGAGEMENT - Providing continuous, year-round support and resources - Guiding schools to incorporate democratic engagement on their campuses - Providing individualized campus plans and feedback - Developing leaders and empowering students to engage their peers 10
ADVOCATING FOR YOUNG VOTERS - Combatting voter restrictions year-round - Our Youth Voting Rights Working Group connects election lawyers and youth organizers on the ground - Developing a Youth Voting Bill of Rights to encourage youth access to the polls REACHING COMMUNITY COLLEGE STUDENTS Community Colleges are often overlooked by nonpartisan registration an GOTV efforts, but nearly half of all undergraduate students in the US attend community colleges, and these schools are a high priority for CVP. The work can be labor-intensive, as Community college students are among the hardest to reach. But because they are also more embedded locally, democratic engagement efforts at these institutions reverberate throughout surrounding communities in ways other youth voter programs may not. ENGAGING STUDENTS AND INSTITUTIONS TO LIFT UP COMMUNITIES OF COLOR Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) and Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSI) also receive voting information through webinars. State and campus specific materials are produced for HBCU administrators and faculty through our partnership with NAFEO, the national organization representing the network of HBCUs and Predominately Black Institutions (PBIs) and HACU, the organization representing Hispanic serving institutions. 11
CAMPUS VOTE PROJECT 2016 OUR ACTIVE STATES 12
NEW INITIATIVES In 2016, FELN launched two new initiatives one to help recruit qualified volunteers to help voters on Election Day, and one to help schools to incorporate democratic engagement on their campuses. Both will continue into 2017. WORK ELECTIONS POLL WORKER RECRUITMENT To help alleviate the struggle many local election officials face in finding qualified election volunteers, FELN launched the Work Elections project in partnership with the University of Minnesota s Election Academy, and Development Seed. This web portal collects and centralizes poll worker requirements and applications for local election jurisdictions in Arizona, California, Florida, Nevada, New Mexico, Ohio and Virginia, and statewide applications for other states. It is also a simplified, central source for potential volunteers who may not know where or how to apply to be a poll worker. www.workelections.com VOTER FRIENDLY CAMPUS In summer 2016, our Campus Vote Project partnered with the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) to establish the Voter Friendly Campus program. The program helps schools incorporate democratic engagement on their campus with individualized plans, feedback, webinars and materials. By implementing their plans before students return to school in the fall, campuses registered more students and empowered students as voters. Ninety-five campuses in 28 states signed up to take part in the Voter Friendly Campus program. Participating campuses will report back with their efforts and the results in early 2017, and campuses that meet the requirements will be designated as Voter Friendly Campuses for 2017 and 2018. 13
2016 ESSENTIAL VOTING MATERIALS FELN offers a variety of short, easy-to-read, state-specific guides that help voters and organizations understand what they need to do to register, vote, and register others to vote. Since regulations related to voter registration and casting a ballot can change throughout the year, our legal team continuously updates materials to ensure the accuracy of the information. 14
OUR 2016 STANDARD GUIDES FOR ALL 50 STATES AND THE DISCRICT OF COLUMBIA INCLUDED: 15
THANK YOU TO OUR 2016 SUPPORTERS Anonymous Phil and Kate Villers Arthur Lipson & Rochelle Kaplan Bernard L Schwartz BluePrint NC Carnegie Corporation of New York Community Foundation for the National Capital Region Evolve Foundation Great Horizons Foundation Haymarket Peoples Fund Project High Hopes Public Interest Projects Inc Rockefeller Family Fund Rosenfeld Rumford Steckler Family Foundation Saint Paul Foundation Sierra Club Foundation State Infrastructure Fund Summer Fund II Lucy G Lehman Naomi and Nehemiah Cohen Foundation NEO Philanthropy Peter Kovler Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program Wallace H Coulter Foundation Whynot Initiative William B Wiener Jr Foundation 16