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There has been so much focus on completely and accurately counting all the 2020 Election votes, dealing with increasingly outlandish claims of voter fraud, and the delayed Presidential transition process. It’s hard at this point to pick out any genuinely hopeful signs for the future functioning of our democracy.
But despite all the chaos and uncertainty, for disabled voters the 2020 General Election in the U.S. may have turned out better on balance than many of us feared — and not just because of who did and didn’t win. The pandemic threw all kinds of monkey wrenches into our usual voting routines. But so far it seems likely that voters with disabilities participated more than ever, and on average encountered fewer barriers than in otherwise “normal” election years.
It may be some time before we can really understand what happened and how it affected disabled voters. But it’s not too early to ask some basic post-election questions, and maybe draw a few tentative conclusions.
What got better with voting access this year? What got worse?
Obviously, 2020 turned out not to be a “normal” election year. With the onset of the pandemic, it seemed unlikely that voting accessibility for people with disabilities could actually improve, when it seemed much more likely that millions of disabled voters might end up being unable to vote at all.
Keri Gray, Senior Director for Stakeholder Engagement & Strategic Communications at the American Association of People with Disabilities, (AAPD) says that, “Our country was largely unprepared for COVID-19 and a global pandemic. Unfortunately, this led to a lot of accessibility issues with our 2020 primaries.”
The central problem was how to make sure every eligible person had an equal chance to vote without significantly increased risk of catching Covid-19. And this was doubly concerning for voters with disabilities and chronic illnesses, for whom Covid-19 is an imminent and serious threat. And just about every step taken to make voting safer from the pandemic came with the potential to make voting harder for disabled people.
Some of the problems were straightforward and obvious. Michelle Bishop, MSW, Voter Access & Engagement Manager at the National Disability Rights Network, (NDRN) notes that, “Many of our long term polling places, like residential care facilities and schools, were unable to serve this year [as polling places] to protect their students or residents from the pandemic.”
As state and local voting officials scrambled to adjust and meet everyone’s needs, the potential for chaos increased. Keri Gray notes, “There were many voters who faced confusion on updated deadlines, polling locations, and registration/ID requirements.”
Meanwhile, disability organizations and activists struggled to keep accessibility a high priority, alongside safety.
“We didn't want voters with disabilities to have to choose sitting out this election or risking COVID-19 exposure by going to the polls,” says Michelle Bishop. Further describing how logistical problems can pile up for disabled voters, she adds:
“Fewer polling places can present a challenge for voters who have to get there and typically don't have adequate accessible transportation. Even in the case where a polling place had been relocated, we saw an increase in complaints about the accessibility of the available pool of polling sites this year.”
Of course, the regular, long standing access barriers didn’t go away either. Sometimes they got worse. “We also saw an increase in calls from voters who had their rights questioned or were denied reasonable accommodations by poll workers, and we think that may come from an influx of new poll workers,” says Bishop. “We also saw some long lines to vote, and that can be a challenge for voters who have a disability that makes it difficult to stand in line for an extended period of time.”
And yet, the challenges of the pandemic also appear to have loosened up some of the old prejudices about innovative voting methods, resulting in some unexpected improvements in accessibility.
“Vote by mail,” says Bishop, “drastically increased in popularity this year, and for good reason. It helped us to socially distance during an election with record turnout.” This was especially critical for people with disabilities.
Gray agrees. “Thankfully, there was a lot of progress made from the primaries to the general elections. The expansion of early voting and absentee voting created a significantly better experience for most voters.”
As Sarah Blahovec, Civic Engagement and Voting Rights Organizer at the National Council on Independent Living, (NCIL), explains, “For some people with disabilities, this meant they could vote from home, without risking exposure at the polling place, and without dealing with physical barriers such as inaccessible polling places or long lines.”
Other voting access strategies got credibly tested too, despite some pockets of resistance.
“Admittedly, we did see a few states dig in their heels and refuse to let voters use curbside voting,” Bishop says, “but we saw expansion of curbside voting in a number of jurisdictions. That really helped make some of those inaccessible locations work for voters and provided a safer option for voters who are most at risk for COVID-19 or who tested positive for COVID-19.”
Crucially though, more voting methods doesn’t automatically translate to more accessibility for disabled voters.
As Sarah Blahovec points out, “Accessibility is complex and not a one-size-fits-all deal.” For instance, “for people who are blind or some folks with mobility disabilities, voting by mail isn’t an accessible means to cast a private and independent ballot.” She explains, “For voters who can’t hand-mark a paper ballot and who didn’t have electronic ballot delivery (and return), they had to decide whether to vote in person to use accessible equipment, or whether to have someone mark their ballot for them.”
“Traditional vote by mail and absentee processes are just [as] inaccessible to so many voters,” adds Bishop.
As it turns out, the pandemic and efforts to adjust to it may have made voting more accessible for some disabled voters — maybe most of them — but not all. As we look to future elections, how can we cement the gains we have made and make them more fully accessible to everyone?
What changes in voting and electoral systems would most benefit voters with disabilities?
Michelle Bishop suggests some specific goals as we look to improve future election accessibility:
• We still need to ensure that all in-person polling places fully comply with Americans with Disabilities Act accessibility standards.
• Curbside voting can be a helpful stop-gap measure while we work to achieve regular polling place accessibility. It may also be a good permanent option for at least some disabled voters.
• Vote by mail systems must be accessible, too, so disabled voters without computers or the ability to physically mark ballots can still cast independent votes from home.
• Poll workers must be better trained in how to work with disabled voters, to prevent both deliberate and unintended disability discrimination.
• Voter competency laws still tend to take away disabled people’s right to vote, especially those who are under legal guardianship. This needs to end.
Sarah Blahovec agrees that a variety of options need to be permanently available. “We need expansion of early voting, mail-in voting, and accessible alternatives to mail-in voting, not just one of those things.” Also, “Some states have implemented internet-based voting for overseas and military voters, and disability organizations are pushing for those options to be extended to voters with disabilities.”
As Keri Grey says, “Continuing these efforts will allow for more voters, including voters with disabilities to participate in upcoming elections.”
And as already noted, we must keep in mind that there is no single change that can guarantee voting accessibility. “No one solution can bring complete accessibility, especially in the context of other voting challenges such as voter suppression,” says Blahovec.
It’s also important to keep the bureaucracy around voting as simple as possible. Currently, even absentee and mail-in ballots aren’t always so easy to access and simple to use. “In different states,” Bishop points out, “they can require up to two witness signatures or a notary” for each ballot … In a few states, if you choose to vote absentee based on a disability, you have to provide a doctor note.”
Finally, it’s vital for all voters to be properly informed well in advance about how each voting option works and what their requirements are. Simple attention to detail matters. “Keeping the election websites regularly updated and releasing these updates in a variety of formats will greatly enhance our electoral system,” says Gray. This is especially important for people with intellectual and communication disabilities who may struggle to find accessibility and procedural information they need in time to meet voting deadlines.
Of course, while voting accessibility is important, so is making sure disabled voters feel they have compelling reasons to vote.
What effect did it have on disabled voters that there were more detailed and ambitious disability policies from this year’s candidates?
This year, ten or more Presidential candidates posted disability policies on their websites. Those from Julian Castro, Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren, Pete Buttigieg, and Bernie Sanders were unusually comprehensive and detailed. And President-Elect Biden’s disability plan, though published late and a bit less ambitious, still stands as an historical milestone.
Sarah Blahovec believes this may have had an effect on disabled voters. “There is so much more work to be done,” she says, “but the fact that so many candidates had comprehensive and community-driven disability policy platforms was important for this community.”
Keri Gray agrees. “This engagement increased voter participation, civic engagement, and interest in our democracy.” She also notes how these more advanced disability policies had an effect on other political and social movements. “We found that the candidates’ inclusion and advocacy towards disability policy was complimented with the broader civil rights community being more inclusive of disability issues.”
It all bodes well for the future, and “gives us hope that we will be able to work with elected officials to actually realize policy goals.” Blahovec says.
Still, policies are only part of the picture. “A policy platform is great, but what about hiring people with disabilities in your campaigns, as well as on your staff if elected?” asks Michelle Bishop.
What’s the most surprising thing that happened related to disabled voters and politics this year?
In a year overflowing with frightening and disappointing surprises, we may find that in the end we can look back on some hopeful ones too.
“It has been incredible seeing record breaking participation in this election cycle, says Keri Gray of the AAPD. “Although, we are still waiting on more details around the disability vote there is no doubt that our community did their part in filling the ‘ballot boxes.’ It is our goal to have this level of engagement continued in all upcoming elections.”
Sarah Blahovec of NCIL also noticed an encouraging sign that came after Election Day. “I think the most surprising thing for me was to hear President-elect Biden mention the disability community in his speech, and for CNN to recognize and talk about #CripTheVote.” She adds that being explicitly mentioned on TV is more than good publicity and awareness-raising. It’s also “a representation of non-disabled people getting over their internalized discomfort with acknowledging disability in general, and recognizing that this is something that they can’t ignore.”
The NDRN’s Michelle Bishop thinks that despite this year’s challenges, the future looks at least somewhat brighter for disabled voters and their influence in politics:
“People with disabilities have been called the sleeping giant of American politics because the community is so large but traditionally ignored by parties and candidates. It was exciting to see more candidates including disability policy among their platforms, participating in forums and Disability Unscripted, and for the first time a question about disability during a televised debate. I hope this is only the beginning of our voting bloc being taken seriously.”
Maybe the most important outcome of the 2020 Elections for the disability community is the discovery that we can run valid, secure elections that are run differently than we are used to. That’s a big deal.
After all, doing things differently in order to produce a better, fairer result is something disabled people do all the time. Maybe we can help instill that spirit of adaptation into our political processes and institutions, injecting them with new life and democratic systems that truly match up to our ideals.
Note: Andrew Pulrang is a co-coordinator of #CripTheVote.
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What Went Right, What Went Wrong With 2020 Voting Accessibility - Forbes
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