As a committed member of this party, I wanted to be sure you were looped in: Today, the DNC was at the Supreme Court challenging two discriminatory and unconstitutional Arizona laws that made it harder for communities of color and those living on Tribal land to vote. Our Supreme Court argument today is just the latest part of our fight to ensure every voice can be heard at the polls.
The stakes have never been higher: This year alone, state lawmakers have proposed over 250 laws to restrict voting access. That's over 7x more than at this point last year.
Make no mistake: These bills are a real threat we need to address right now. Without support from members of this grassroots team like you, we risk being unable to fight bills like these with the dedication and attention they deserve.
If you feel compelled to join this important cause, then I'm asking you to make an emergency donation of $7, or whatever you can afford, so we can keep up the fight and continue electing Democrats up and down the ballot. Otherwise, I hope you'll give me a moment to get into a little more detail about our plans to stop these voting restrictions in the weeks and months ahead:
Voter protection litigation
Our fight in the courts extends way beyond today's Supreme Court arguments. The DNC was at the forefront of challenging Trump and Republicans' election lawsuits last cycle.
But litigation is just one of the many tools in our toolkit, and to be honest, it's all too often our last line of defense. So here's just a few of the ways we're playing offense, too:
Media and messaging
The DNC is working around the clock to bring media attention to Republicans' deeply unpopular efforts to suppress the vote.
While much of the country's attention is consumed with COVID-19 and keeping our families safe and healthy, Republicans are trying to use this moment to pass legislation restricting your right to vote under the cover of darkness. Through organizing, communications, and media work, we're shining a light on these efforts to stop them before they have a chance to do real damage.
Protecting the right to vote
The DNC employed a top-notch voter protection team last cycle, including dedicated voter protection experts embedded in key states. Given the stakes of this moment, we're doing everything we can to keep this team muscular and effective.
This work is important, but it's also expensive to maintain. With support from you -- and this committed grassroots team -- we can keep our voter protection program robust and staffed without sacrificing any of the other programs we're relying on to protect the vote and help Democrats win up and down the ballot.
Fighting for redistricting
Republican gerrymandering -- the act of drawing unfair boundaries that makes it harder to compete in many districts -- is a big reason that states like Georgia and Arizona still have Republican state legislatures. These are states that President Biden and other Democrats carried in November, and yet their gerrymandered, Republican-controlled state legislatures are the starting point of a lot of this harmful voter suppression legislation.
Unless we want to face this same disadvantage over the next 10 years, we need to lock arms and move together as a Democratic and progressive movement to ensure states draw fair maps where everyone's voices are heard at the state and local level.
Winning everywhere
If we can hold off the worst of Republicans' attacks on voting rights on multiple fronts -- in the courts, through the media, in the state legislatures, and through redistricting -- we're in a position for Democrats to win big at the ballot box in elections to come. As we pick up more seats at the local and state level, we can pass state laws that protect every voter's right to make their voice heard.
Thank you for taking the time to read about our party's plans to protect the right to vote.
What we believe is plain and simple: Every voter should have their ballot counted, no matter their race, background, or ZIP code. If you agree, can you rush a $7 gift to the DNC right now so we can keep up the fight and elect Democrats up and down the ballot?
We can only do this work together, which is why I'm so grateful to have you on this team.
Onward,
Sam
Sam Cornale
Executive Director
Democratic National Committee
