Bal Harbour, Fla.
During the 2000 Presidential election, the nation learned a great deal about the many ways in which voting procedures across America prevent voters from having their say. One of the things we learned again is that the failure of voting systems disproportionately disenfranchises certain discrete groups of voters, in particular people of color, immigrants, people with disabilities and older Americans. The 2000 elections also showed us the need for ballot education; voters who did not understand the ballot made mistakes that resulted in their votes being lost. The nation must act now to ensure that the wholesale disenfranchisement of voters is never repeated.
A number of organizations and thousands of concerned individuals are engaged in the campaign to bring more minority and other traditionally disenfranchised voters into the election process and to prevent them from being discouraged or disenfranchised as they were in the 2000 elections. The AFL-CIO has an opportunity to participate with national, state and local coalitions working towards these ends. In addition, the Federation and its constituency groups can make a unique contribution to the goals of the campaign by:
Educating and Mobilizing Our Members. Working through our international and local union structures, as well as state and local AFL-CIO central bodies and constituency groups, we will arm union members with information needed to defend their communities from efforts to suppress voter turnout and to tamper with the basic right of every voter to cast a ballot and have it counted. We will inform union members about changes brought about by the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) and how members can participate in state and local “election protection” and voting rights coalitions. We will recruit union members and retirees to serve as effective poll watchers. We will also fuel member-voter resolve by reminding them of the long and ugly history of so-called “ballot integrity” efforts and of the massive voting rights denials in the 2000 federal elections.
Advocating on Behalf of Voters. Aware that millions of voters were denied their right to vote as much by faulty technology and lack of preparation as by purposeful fraud and deceit, we will create teams of “My Vote, My Right” advocates in targeted communities. These advocate teams will survey the changes—or lack thereof—being implemented by state and local election authorities. They will conduct formal visits with Secretaries of State as well as with local voting boards and registrars to urge corrective measures be undertaken or increased. The advocate teams will engage in appropriate public education, including through the media, to expose problems and to force implementation well ahead of the November elections.
Educating and Motivating the Public. We will utilize radio and television to inform and motivate the public through “celebrity” public service announcements and through news, feature and op-ed articles in print media. The messages will remind voters of the 2000 election fiasco, urge them to respond by registering and voting, and direct them to a central information source for answers to questions. The “celebrities” will also appear at local community meetings, rallies and demonstrations to reinforce our message.
Our efforts to ensure that every vote is counted are particularly appropriate as we approach the 40th anniversary of the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The promise of the Voting Rights Act will only be realized if labor and its allies devote resources to fight both old and new voter suppression tactics.