{"id":529,"date":"2023-11-28T20:39:12","date_gmt":"2023-11-28T20:39:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/progressmo.com\/?p=529"},"modified":"2023-11-28T20:39:12","modified_gmt":"2023-11-28T20:39:12","slug":"protecting-voters-with-disabilities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gallant-mclaren.18-188-198-158.plesk.page\/index.php\/2023\/11\/28\/protecting-voters-with-disabilities\/","title":{"rendered":"Protecting Their Votes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Person<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s Time For Missouri To Make It Easier For People With Disabilities To Vote<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This week, elderly Missourians and Missourians with disabilities are challenging a new voter ID law that makes it harder for them to vote.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

But overturning this anti-democratic law should be just the beginning. If Missouri politicians want to work for adults with disabilities, they have a long way to go in earning their trust and building a state that works for them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Missouri\u2019s Voting Laws Make It Harder For Adults With Disabilities To Vote<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Even without restrictive voting laws like those found in Missouri, adults with disabilities face more barriers to voting than adults without disabilities. National research from earlier this year found that 18% of voters with disabilities have difficulty waiting in line to vote<\/strong>,<\/a> compared to only 11% of voters without disabilities. Voters with disabilities are more than twice as likely<\/strong><\/a> as voters without disabilities to say they have difficulty getting to their polling place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Missouri, anti-democratic voting laws make it harder for people with disabilities. The voter ID law currently in the courts has a disproportionate effect on voters with disabilities, who are almost twice as likely not to have photo ID<\/a> than voters without disabilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Brianna Lennon, the County Clerk for Boone County, county election authorities don\u2019t get the necessary funding to train election workers on how to help voters with disabilities or to fix broken equipment. State law also doesn\u2019t require accessible voting equipment at every polling place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, Missouri\u2019s absentee voting requirements present unique challenges to voters with disabilities. Missouri requires mail-in ballots to be received by election day with notarization,<\/a> which is uniquely challenging for adults with disabilities who must rely on caregivers or paratransit services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Can Politicians Do About It?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

61% of voters with disabilities<\/a> do not believe that public officials and politicians care about what people with disabilities think. If politicians want to change that perception, it\u2019s on them to expand access to the ballot box.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019re calling on politicians to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n