By Jeffrey Freedman
Article appeared in The Buffalo News
Tightening up voting requirements for American citizens by asking them to provide proof of citizenship, restricting mail-in voting, and posting ICE at the polls is disruptive for every voter.
For the disabled, however, these restrictions could make voting impossible. According to the Center for American Progress, people living with disabilities were more than three times as likely as voters without disabilities to report difficulty casting a ballot in the 2022 election, according to the most recently reported statistics.
As an attorney who has represented over 22,000 disabled Americans, I have had firsthand experience with the limitations faced by the disabled in completing tasks such as registering and casting their votes.
While our clients are applying for SSD, they typically live on little to no income. They may go through periods with no fixed address. Important documents such as birth certificates can easily become lost and replacing them is a challenge.
Many disabled individuals do not have easy access to the Internet. Douglas Kruse, co-director of the Program for Disability Research at Rutgers University, reports 53% of visually impaired voters have significant problems voting.
Since 2002, when the Help America Vote Act passed, the Federal Election Commission has worked for improved access to voting for the disabled. Federal law currently protects disabled voters’ ability to vote privately and independently.
Now is not the time to go back on the progress made. Those on SSD and Supplemental Security Income, veterans disability, those applying for benefits, and all housebound Americans cannot be shut out of the voting process.
If you have questions about helping a disabled person with registration or voting regulations, call the Election Protection Hotline (866) 687-8683; check usa.gov/voter-fraud; or contact your county election office.
Disabled Americans’ access to voting must be protected.
