Protecting Democracy from the Frontlines
By Katrina Gamble, WDN Action Political Strategy Consultant and Founder of Sojourn Strategies
This year we have seen escalating attacks on our democratic institutions, from voting rights to the freedom to protest. However, it is important to note that this is building on a nearly ten-year erosion of voting rights that began in earnest with the gutting of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 in 2013. As we’re seeing today, much of those erosions on voting access happened at the state level with the passage of voter ID laws, restrictions in voting times, and purging of voter lists. At the same time, there have also been significant gains in pro-democracy policies at the state level with the passage of restoration of rights for formerly incarcerated people in states like Florida, and more recently New York and Washington. There have been policies to make the ballot more accessible, such as automatic voter registration, online voter registration, and same-day registration.
What makes the current anti-voter policies even more worrisome is that they appear to be in direct response to the increasing political power demonstrated by BIPOC and young voters in 2020. To add to this, these voter suppression bills are being framed as a fix to issues of fraud and election insecurity that don’t exist. The growing push of disinformation questioning the integrity and security of our elections is a dangerous threat to our democracy.
In the face of this widespread voter suppression, we’ve funded a diverse array of base-building organizations that are developing powerful defensive strategies in even the most politically difficult landscapes. For example, in Texas, Republicans are attempting to pass a bill that would restrict early voting, add voter ID and other hurdles to vote by mail, and other measures that were particularly useful in making the vote more accessible to all people, but particularly to communities of color. Several WDN Action grantees, including MOVE Texas, TOP, Workers Defense Action Fund, and other partners have developed innovative strategies to call attention to these harmful bills while delaying passage in the legislature. Everything from developing a long list of amendments to slow the process, to packing the committee hearings and the Capitol with community members to stand in defense of voting rights have been boldly implemented. These strategies, led by grassroots organizations, gave the political cover and space for Democrats to leave the state, breaking quorum, and ultimately stall passage of the legislation.
Anti-voter policies passed in Georgia early this year included a number of restrictive provisions, including restrictions on vote by mail and probably one of the most concerning provisions that gives the State Board of Elections the ability to suspend county election superintendents. In the face of these restrictions, we saw organizations such as New Georgia Project Action, Asian American Advocacy Fund, the Georgia Alliance, Black Voters Matter, and others push a huge public campaign and corporate accountability strategy to shine a spotlight on the voter suppression efforts in Georgia. As a result, we saw a number of businesses, who had never spoken out on democracy issues, take public stances against the voter suppression bill. The fight in Georgia is not over and the work of building public support for voting rights is critical to the road ahead.
The political landscape in many states makes defensive campaigns incredibly difficult, and organizations have been really innovative in their efforts to slow down and mitigate some of the harm being pushed by conservatives and Republicans. WDN Action partners – from LUCHA and Our Voice Our Vote in Arizona to Detroit Action and Rising Voices Action in Michigan and many, many others – are the frontline protection to our democracy. While groups like Black Voters Matter, The Alliance for Youth Action, Take Back the Court, Progressive Caucus Action Fund, Working Families Organization, and others continue to push for a federal solution to these attacks on voting rights, these organizations are developing and scaling up large scale voter education and mobilization programs. For example, in Georgia, ensuring the tens of thousands of new voters that participated in 2020 understand the changes to the voting laws and have the ability to cast their ballot despite these new obstacles is critical. Further, making sure that individuals understand who is responsible for the new barriers to voting and using that as a way to offer a counter narrative to the GOP disinformation campaign is important for the long-term fight.
This is the moment for us to lean in even more to support year-round organizing, beyond elections, and invest in work that is rooted in racial and gender justice movements: investments in people, systems, and tools that help organizations and coalitions do more and do it better. Our grantees are fighting multiple fights while also having to scale massive electoral programs ahead of 2022. We must resource these battles on both fronts – through advocacy and accountability campaigns in state legislatures and Congress and through electoral organizing and power-building in the field.