IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 9/12 Supporting the Voting Rights of People with Disabilities

9/12/2024 Supporting the Voting Rights of People with Disabilities (Updated 9/16)

  • Mike Cruse, Moderator: LINCS Community Learners with Disabilities Group
  • Jennifer Gagliardi, Moderator: LINCS Community Civics Education and Citizenship Group

Purpose:

  • Today’s event highlights the updated guide of The Americans with Disabilities Act and Other Federal Laws Protecting the Rights of Voters with Disabilities.  This guide describes the legal protections designed to allow full access to every aspect of elections for people with disabilities. 
  • Together we will address these questions:
    • What are the considerations for voter registration and polling places?
    • What resources can adult educators share with learners?

American Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA)

  • Voting is one of our nation’s most fundamental rights and a hallmark of our democracy. Yet for too long, many people with disabilities have been excluded from this core aspect of citizenship. 
  • People with intellectual or mental health disabilities have been prevented from voting because of prejudicial assumptions about their capabilities. 
  • People who use wheelchairs or other mobility aids, such as walkers, have been unable to enter the polling place to cast their ballot because there was no ramp. 
  • People who are blind or have low vision could not cast their vote because the ballot was completely inaccessible to them.

The Americans with Disabilities Act and Voters with Disabilities

  • The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal civil rights law that provides protections to people with disabilities. Title II of the ADA requires state and local governments to ensure that people with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. 
  • The ADA’s provisions apply to all aspects of voting, including voter registration, polling place site selection, election websites, and the casting of ballots during any point in the voting process, whether in-person or absentee. The ADA applies to all voting, including federal, state, and local elections.

Other Federal Laws Protecting the Rights of Voters with Disabilities

  • The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA) 
  • The Voting Accessibility for Elderly and Handicapped Act of 1984 (VAEHA)
  • The National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA)
  • The Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA)

Connecting with the ADA

  • For information about how the ADA applies to voting, please visit our website Voting and Polling Places or call our toll-free number.
  • ADA Information Line
  • 800-514-0301 (Voice) and 833-610-1264 (TTY)
  • 24 hours a day to order publications by mail.
  • Monday, Wednesday, Friday: 9:30 am-12 pm and 3 pm-5:30 pm; Tuesday: 12:30 pm-5:30 pm; Thursday 2:30 pm-5:30 pm (Eastern Time) to speak with an ADA Specialist.
  • Calls are confidential.

Additional Disability Voting Rights Resources: