National Disability Voter Registration Week is September 13 – 20

By Olivia Babis

Every year since 2016 the American Association of People with Disabilities has hosted National Disability Voter Registration Week in coordination with its REV UP campaign state chapters, including Florida’s REV UP Chapter, Access the Vote Florida. An estimated 38 million people with disabilities were eligible to vote nationwide during the 2020 elections making the disability community the largest minority voting bloc in the United States. Despite these large numbers, issues that affect the disability community are not usually discussed during elections or are discussed with no mention of the implications for people with disabilities. The goal of the REV UP campaign, and National Disability Voter Registration Week, is to bring together disability and voting rights advocates to grow the power of the disability vote by sharing resources and getting people registered to vote.

As the U.S. population ages, the number of people with disabilities will continue to increase giving the disability vote the opportunity to become a powerful voting bloc. Disabled voters have already begun organizing and demanding that local, state, and national candidates address issues important to people with disabilities. During the 2020 elections, more candidates hired staff with disabilities, included disability in their platforms, and mentioned policy implications for people with disabilities during debates. 

The current presidential administration has hired a visibly disabled woman to serve as the Assistant Director for the White House Office of Public Relations and the Office of the Vice President has held round table meetings with members of the disability community to discuss policy issues that directly affect people with disabilities. I was honored to have been invited to the White House to participate in one of these round table meetings with Vice President Harris and several other disability self-advocates across the country to discuss barriers to voting for people with disabilities. Vice President Harris listened attentively as we all shared our experiences with inaccessible polling locations, ballot marking devices that do not work or that poll workers have not been properly trained in setting up, vote-by-mail programs that remain inaccessible to voters who are blind or low vision or have print disabilities, and even having our capacity to vote challenged.

Despite some of these positive changes, we still have a long way to go. That candidates and elected officials are listening to people with disabilities on the issues important to them is encouraging, however, the question of what actions they will actively take to improve accessibility remains. For example, an analysis of all the 2020 presidential candidate’s websites conducted by the Miami Lighthouse for the Blind showed that not a single candidate had an accessible website, despite having elevated disability to a mainstream platform issue, thereby denying people who are blind, low-vision, or who use assistive technology the ability to learn about the candidates. Right after the Miami Lighthouse for the Blind’s report was released several candidates discussed their plans to improve access to health care and employment for people with disabilities during debate, but a second review of their websites showed that most had taken minimal to no action to improve their website accessibility.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Access the Vote Florida will not be holding any in-person voter registration events for National Disability Voter Registration Week this year, however, there are still plenty of ways you can get involved. Several municipal governments across Florida have passed proclamations recognizing September 13 – September 20, 2021, as National Disability Voter Registration Week including Volusia County, the City of Daytona Beach, Miami-Dade County, Palm Beach County, the City of South Bay, the City of Bartow, Duval County and Leon County.  Reach out to these local elected officials and thank them for their support. Most can be tagged on their official Facebook and Twitter pages. Follow Access the Vote FL on Facebook and Twitter and share our posts and tweets throughout National Disability Voter Registration Week. Register to vote or make sure that your registration is up to date through our partner, When We All Vote.

Every issue is a disability issue from transportation, affordable housing, and health care to climate change mitigation, education, and so much more. Share with us what issues motivate you to vote. Remember, your vote is your voice, and your voice has power! Register! Educate! Vote! Use your power (REV UP)! Make sure you are vote-ready for 2022!