Dear Friends,
Today is the 60th anniversary of the passage of the Voting Rights Act on August 6, 1965. I cannot help but reflect that, at the time it was passed—and into the early 2000s—the VRA enjoyed overwhelming bipartisan support.
Since then, that consensus has been steadily undermined, most egregiously in 2013, when the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Shelby County v. Holder opened the floodgates to states enacting all manner of restrictive and discriminatory voting laws. Today we have a weakened VRA that is functionally non-existent.
As a country and an electorate, we find ourselves once again in a historical moment that is similar to when the VRA was passed 60 years ago: a polarized political climate that is actively hostile to voting rights, to free and fair elections, and to fair representation for all Americans regardless of race, ethnicity, country of origin, gender, or income. Some recent examples we are tracking include:
- Record numbers of voters purged from voter rolls.
- Anonymous armed groups threatening voters at ballot drop boxes.
- Malicious tactics deployed to prevent or dissuade students from voting.
- Redistricting in North Carolina, in Texas, and multiple other locations.
This is the situation we are up against as a nation and as a voting rights organization heading into the run-up for the 2026 Midterm Elections. It’s a situation that has many people concerned, rightfully so, about the authoritarian erosion of our Constitutional rights as guaranteed to us by the Bill of Rights, especially the First Amendment.
As we move forward, Fair Elections Center will continue to build on our core strengths while exploring and elevating fresh ideas and approaches across all of our programs to ensure that they remain effective at protecting and extending people’s right to vote against these concerted attacks.
Voting Rights Project: We are being increasingly creative and strategic about how we bring forth both state and federal litigation, looking for opportunities to go on the offensive, develop innovative cases, and support policy positions that improve the health of our democracy.
Campus Vote Project: We are currently focused on deepening relationships with our campus partner institutions, fostering the idea of campuses as thriving civic engagement hubs.
Work Elections Project: We are engaged in conversations with jurisdictions all across the country to better meet their current needs for poll workers.
At Fair Elections Center, we focus on making sure that the mechanics of all elections are free and fair. This means that regardless of where you stand on the political spectrum, how you view current events, or your immutable characteristics, like race, ethnicity, or gender: if you are eligible to vote, our job is to ensure that you have the opportunity to make your voice heard.
- We will continue to make sure that eligible voters are able to cast their ballots.
- We will continue to combat misinformation and disinformation campaigns against targeted groups, like Black voters and students, providing them with timely and accurate information about registration and voting prepared by legal experts.
- We will continue to fight in the courts for voting rights restoration, against voter purges, and against restrictions that make it harder for eligible voters to exercise their right to vote.
- We will continue to advocate for voting rights legislation, like the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, and advise and inform legislators, journalists, academics, legal professionals, and other interested parties about voting rights policy issues across the U.S.
- We will continue to organize and inspire lifelong civic engagement in young people and establish campuses across the country as trusted hubs of civic engagement in both rural and urban communities.
These times may be challenging, but they are not unprecedented. The era prior to the passage of the Voting Rights Act is recent enough to be vivid in many people’s living memories—I can’t help but uplift that I am among the first generation in my family to be born into full voting rights, despite my family having lived in this country for centuries. The timeless tools and tactics that brought forth the VRA are the same ones we employ today at Fair Elections Center: organizing, litigation, policy advocacy, education, and poll worker recruitment.
These are the things that we stand for, the things we are doing, and how we’re moving into the future.
I am hopeful for that future.
I am hopeful because I believe that wherever people are organizing, building extended networks of community and relationships, there is always hope and the potential for change. I believe that young people in this country are a bridge to a brighter future—our job is to pass them the baton. And I believe that with our programmatic strengths and strategic approach, Fair Elections Center is uniquely configured to fight back against today’s bad-faith actors and the multiple incursions against our voting rights.
I know there’s no one with whom I’d rather be doing this work than our tireless and talented staff and all of you reading this: our incredibly dedicated friends and colleagues in the fight for voting rights.
With gratitude,
Rebekah Caruthers
Fair Elections Center President & CEO