Congress passed the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) in 1993 to increase the number of citizens registered to vote in Federal elections.
One of the most important ways the NVRA was designed to increase registration was by ensuring that citizens are offered the opportunity to register to vote at places where they interact with the government: at motor vehicle offices and public assistance offices (such as those that provide Food Stamps, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Medicaid).
However, since the implementation of the NVRA in 1995–1996, many states have been neglecting the voter registration provisions of the law. Project Vote works to enforce the NVRA’s requirements, and ensure that all citizens are provided with the voter registration assistance they are guaranteed under the law.
The Government Agency Registration Program assists states, social service agencies, motor vehicle offices, and election officials with implementation of the NVRA’s requirements. In addition to technical assistance, the Program conducts research, documents noncompliance and, when necessary, initiates litigation to enforce the NVRA.
Additionally, the Government Agency Registration Program works to expand voter registration opportunities at other places where eligible citizens interact with their government, such as immigration offices and health benefits providers.
Voter registration drives will always have an essential role to play in our democracy, but the responsibility to register eligible Americans to vote must rest first and foremost on the government.
Most Recent / Relevant Items
- (252)
- (31)
- (10)
- (22)
- (52)
- (68)
- (76)
Advanced Filters and Sorting
New Mexico Settles Lawsuit, Agrees to Offer Voter Registration to Public Assistance Clients
A federal judge today approved a consent order requiring New Mexico state officials to implement procedures to ensure that thousands of New Mexico citizens have the opportunity to register to vote at state public assistance offices, as provided by the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA). Read more
Georgia Failing to Offer Voter Registration to Public Assistance Clients
Citing clear evidence that low-income Georgia residents are being denied a legally-mandated opportunity to register to vote, attorneys from Project Vote, Demos, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (LCCRUL), the ACLU Voting Rights Project, and the law firm of Dechert LLP sent a pre-litigation notice letter today to Secretary of State Brian Kemp, on behalf of the Georgia State Conference of the NAACP, demanding that the Secretary immediately act to bring Georgia into compliance with the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) or face litigation. Read more
Louisiana Defaulting on Federal Obligation to Register Low-Income Residents
Citing clear evidence that numerous low-income Louisiana residents have been denied the opportunity to register to vote, attorneys from Project Vote, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF), and New Orleans attorney Ronald Wilson, have sent officials a pre-litigation notice letter regarding the state’s non-compliance with the federal requirements of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA). Read more
Court Rules that New Mexico Is In Violation of Federal Voter Registration Law
A coalition of voting rights groups scored a major victory yesterday in their lawsuit against New Mexico’s Human Services Division (HSD) and Secretary of State Mary Herrera, with a ruling by a U.S. District Judge that the State of New Mexico is in violation of the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA). Read more
More than One Hundred Thousand Low-Income Ohioans Register to Vote
More than 100,000 low-income Ohio residents have applied to register to vote at state Department of Job and Family Service (ODJFS) offices in the first six months of 2010, following a federal court settlement to bring the state agency into compliance with the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA). Read more
New Mexico Settles Lawsuit, Agrees to Implement “Motor Voter†Law
Tens of thousands of New Mexico residents who visit state motor vehicle offices will be able to register to vote or update their voter registration information, thanks to a settlement agreement reached last week in a lawsuit to bring the state’s Motor Vehicle Division into compliance with the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) of 1993. Read more
Federal Court Lawsuit Settlement Brings Ohio Into Compliance with National Voter Registration Act
Low-income Ohio citizens will be ensured access to voter registration at Ohio public assistance offices as a result of a settlement agreement submitted to Federal District Court Judge Patricia A. Gaughan over this past holiday weekend. Read more
New Case Study Documents Successful Turnaround of Missouri’s Public Agency Registration Program
Today, Project Vote is releasing a new report, Registering Low-Income Voters through Public Assistance Agencies in Missouri, which shows just how well public agency voter registration can work. Read more
Lawsuit Filed to Demand that New Mexico Jump-Start Voter Registration Efforts
Citing clear evidence that New Mexico public assistance agencies and motor vehicle offices have violated their federally mandated responsibility to offer tens of thousands of New Mexicans each year the opportunity to register to vote, a coalition of voting rights groups filed suit today against officials in New Mexico for violations of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA). Read more
Voting Rights Groups Sue Indiana for Neglecting Low-Income Voters
Citing clear evidence that Indiana public assistance agencies have violated their federally mandated responsibility to offer tens of thousands of clients the opportunity to register to vote each year, a coalition of voting rights groups filed suit today against officials in Indiana for violations of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA). Read more