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The Lawyers’ Committee has released state-specific third-party Voter Registration Guides.
Read the Lawyers’ Committee’s new report, Election Protection 2008 Primary Report, Looking Ahead to November.
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Election Protection 2008
Election Protection - the nation’s largest non-partisan voter protection coalition - has organized earlier than ever before to prepare for 2008’s historic elections. The enthusiasm and excitement generated by this year’s presidential primaries has produced record turnout across the country. While this increased early interest is good for democracy, it has put an increased strain on already overburdened election systems across the country. Fortunately, Election Protection has been there to help voters throughout the primary season.
During the primaries on February 5th, February 12th, March 4th and April 22nd, Election Protection received over 6000 calls to the hotline, recruited and trained almost 1600 legal volunteers who answered over 100 phone lines in 8 call centers from coast to coast, and assisted voters on the ground at targeted polling places. Click here to read Election Protection’s newly updated primary report, "Looking Ahead to November."
February 5th "Super Tuesday"
With over half of the country voting in primaries on February 5, 2008, Election Protection sprung into action to protect voters across the country. Overall, the coalition received nearly 3000 calls to the 1-866-OUR-VOTE voter services hotline, run by the Lawyers’ Committee, and also recruited and trained over 500 legal volunteers who answered over 70 phone lines in 5 call centers from coast to coast, and assisted voters on the ground at targeted polling places.
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February 12th "Potomac Primaries"
On February 12, 2008, Election Protection received over 1200 calls to the 1-866-OUR-VOTE Election Protection hotline from the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia. The Lawyers’ Committee recruited over 100 legal volunteers who answered phone lines, monitored polling sites, and were stationed at the offices of county election officials. Election Protection worked overtime on the 12th when a Maryland judge extended polling hours in that state due to an ice storm.
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March 4th "Texas-Ohio Two-Step"
During the primaries in Ohio, Texas, Vermont, and Rhode Island on March 4, 2008, Election Protection received over 1000 calls to the 1-866-OUR-VOTE Election Protection Hotline, and had over 200 legal volunteers answering phone lines, monitoring polling sites, and stationed at the offices of county election officials from 6am until the polls closed.
In Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Election Protection mobile legal volunteers worked closely with poll workers to solve problems because the county board of elections’ hotline was jammed all day. Election Protection was able to quickly contact volunteers directly at the board’s offices and fix problems in minutes rather than hours, protecting the right to vote for countless Ohioans. In Texas, Election Protection volunteers worked overtime when the complex Democratic Party primary/precinct convention rules confused and disenfranchised voters across the state.
Please read our Report on the March 4, 2008 Report on the Primary Election in Cuyahoga County, Ohio
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April 22 "Pennsylvania Primary"
On April 22nd the Lawyers’ Committee and principle Pennsylvania coalition partner the Committee of Seventy were on the ground with over 800 volunteers, mostly stationed in Philadelphia, making this the largest single state Election Protection Primary program.
Voter turnout once again led to overwhelmed poll workers and long lines - over 3.8 million voters cast ballots in Pennsylvania’s primary. As in the other primaries covered by Election Protection, the high turnout exposed many of the fundamental problems that plague the election administration system throughout the state. The sources of problems faced by voters in other states - untrained poll workers, voting machine malfunctions, and problems with the voter rolls - caused many of the obstacles Pennsylvanians faced at the polls.
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May 6 "Indiana and North Carolina Primaries"
Election Protection again helped to ensure voters were able to cast meaningful ballots on May 6th, the last major primary day of the 2008 cycle. The trend of record turnout continued as voters went to the polls in Indiana and North Carolina.
The Lawyers’ Committee and DLA Piper US LLP set up a call center in New York City, where legal volunteers answered calls from both primary states through the 1-866-OUR-VOTE Hotline. Along with coalition partners the Brennan Center for Justice and Democracy North Carolina, Election Protection volunteers worked with election officials on the ground in Allen, Bartholomew, Clark, Elkhart, Howard, Lake, LaPorte, Madison, Marion, Monroe, Rush, St. Joseph, Vanderburgh and Vigo counties in Indiana and Durham, Mecklenburg, Orange and Wake counties in North Carolina.
Early in the day Indiana’s strict voter ID law emerged as a significant issue, with Election Protection receiving reports from across the state from voters who were turned away from the polls. Students, members of the armed services, and even a group of retired nuns were not allowed to cast a ballot due to the burdensome law recently upheld by the United States Supreme Court.
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What is Election Protection?
In 2000, millions of Americans, primarily those in minority communities, were denied their right to vote through a combination of illegal threats and intimidation, ineffective voter education, inadequately trained poll workers, and voting machines that did not work. To respond to these challenges, the Election Protection coalition was formed to ensure that all voters have the opportunity to participate in the political process.
How do I volunteer for Election Protection?
We are currently recruiting pro bono attorneys, law students and paralegals to volunteer for Election Protection. Sign up here to volunteer!
In the months and weeks leading up to Election Day, Election Protection legal volunteers also meet with election officials to learn about the implementation of laws and regulations, support voter registration efforts, coordinate the legal and grassroots programs, and help educate voters about their rights. On Election Day, volunteer attorneys, law students, and attorneys help staff local call centers (where applicable), monitor polling sites, serve as mobile field attorneys to respond to immediate issues, and coordinate the legal field program in the local command center. Learn more about our Legal Field Program.