FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
Rachel Barnhart
National Media Strategist, RepresentUs
rbarnhart@represent.us
(413) 333-5656
- Stimulus bill passed by U.S. Senate is a good start, but it does not have enough funding to expand voting at home options.
- COVID-19 has upended elections across the U.S. and we need to plan for November.
- RepresentUs launched a federal and state-level campaign for voting at home.
FLORENCE, MASS. (March 26, 2020): RepresentUs applauds the U.S. Senate for including key measures to ensure all voters can participate safely and securely in the 2020 Presidential election this November. But Congress must do more to fully fund voting at home.
The $400 million approved to help states expand voting by mail and early voting and increase safety measures is an important start, but it is not enough. The Brennan Center estimates we need $2 billion to run free and fair elections in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. RepresentUs urges states to use these funds to expand voting at home for upcoming primaries. Congress should provide more funding so all states can adopt this solution.
"We've already seen how the coronavirus wreaked havoc on primaries. Let's avoid a repeat in November by making sure voters can safely vote at home,” said Josh Silver, Co-Founder and Director of RepresentUs. “We are giving $500 billion in relief for corporations, but giving less than what Americans need to exercise their right to vote.”
Here is how RepresentUs is fighting to expand voting at home:
- We created an interactive tool that shows people if and how they can vote safely from home during the 2020 primaries and the general election in November. The tool directly connects voters to an absentee ballot application in their state. Voters can also use our Twitter tool to directly contact their Senators to advocate for vote at home options.
- This week, more than 2,500 RepresentUs volunteers called and more than 300 volunteers tweeted their senators to ask for safe Vote at Home options. Our volunteers also texted nearly 25,000 voters. The RepresentUs petition calling for voting at home has more than 13,500 signatures.
Voting at home is the default in five states. In all other states, voters have to request an absentee ballot. And in 17 states voters must provide an excuse to get an absentee ballot, though a handful of states are providing important temporary exceptions in the wake of the crisis.
Silver is available for phone or video interviews about RepresentUs’ campaign to expand voting at home.
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RepresentUs is the nation’s largest grassroots anti-corruption campaign, bringing together conservatives, progressives, and everyone in between to pass anti-corruption laws in cities and states to stop political bribery, end secret money, and fix our broken elections.