Project Vote’s Election Administration (EA) Program was created to respond to on-going problems that restrict Americans' access to the democratic process. In 2013, Project Vote's team of experts is working through research, litigation, advocacy, and field efforts to ensure that voter registration is accessible, effective, and enduring.

 

Right now, across the country and in all three branches of government, partisan battles are being fought over voter registration policies, voter list maintenance procedures, ID and proof-of-citizenship requirements, and other vital election administration issues that will shape the electorate for 2014 and beyond. (To keep up with pending election legislation, subscribe to Project Vote's weekly Election Legislation Digest.)

 

Project Vote’s Election Administration Program is working to promote and protect policies that ensure that every eligible American can register, vote, and cast a ballot that counts. 

• In 2013, Project Vote is working to protect voter registration drives: 
  
  Registering to vote is the gateway to American democracy, and the history of civil rights in this country is unimaginable without the role played by voter registration drives. In recent years, however, this legacy has come under increased attack as state after state has attempted to pass laws making it prohibitively difficult, risky, or expensive for any organization to conduct a voter registration drive. 
  
  This year, Project Vote is continuing our lawsuit in Texas to challenge some of the worst voter registration laws in the country, and fighting the passage of similar laws in other states seeking to shut down voter registration efforts. We have won a lawsuit in Virginia to enforce the National Voter Registration Act’s voter file transparency requirements— which are important so that drives can determine whether applicants are being improperly rejected or removed—and we are currently preparing suits against a number of other states.
  
  
• In 2013, Project Vote is working to strike down or prevent the passage of harmful and discriminatory laws:
  
  Project Vote’s EA Program, often working with voting rights allies, will challenge or mitigate laws and procedures that result in low-income Americans, people of color, and other underrepresented groups from being disenfranchised. We are working in states to challenge or mitigate voter ID requirements; to investigate list maintenance procedures that may violate federal law; and to bring litigation where necessary to enforce existing laws and protect the rights of voters.
  
  In Harris Co., Texas, for example, Project Vote’s attorneys have brought suit against election officials for procedures that have resulted in a disproportionate number of rejected voter registration applications from people of color. In Florida, we have secured a partial settlement in our challenge of the state’s purge of alleged non-citizen voters, and we are monitoring several other states that may be in the process of following Florida’s lead. Project Vote is one of several plaintiffs in the current U.S. Supreme Court case over Arizona’s proof-of-citizenship requirements, which could have far-ranging implications for how states can create new hurdles to voting.