VoteRiders Celebrates 10-Year Anniversary with National Voter ID Month Of Action

LOS ANGELES (March 31, 2022) – Today, the nation’s leading voter ID education and assistance nonpartisan nonprofit has launched a National Voter ID Month of Action during April, in recognition of its 10 year anniversary. With states across America poised to pass almost two dozen new and stricter voter ID measures during an incredibly consequential midterm election year, comprehensive voter education and assistance has never been more urgent.

“The entire VoteRiders team is thrilled to celebrate 10 years of effective work helping millions of voters to ensure they have the ID they need to cast a ballot that counts in every election. And we are beyond excited to leverage our celebration into a series of impactful actions throughout the month of April,” says Kathleen Unger, voter ID expert and VoteRiders’ Founder, President, and Chair of the Board. “As increasingly strict and confusing voter ID laws have proliferated over the years, the need for our free tools and services has grown exponentially.”

The month will involve coordinated digital and field-based activations across the country, ensuring that American voters are prepared, confident, and ready to cast a ballot that counts in 2022 and beyond. Over the course of the month, VoteRiders will host 10 “birthday celebrations” involving voter ID assistance events in communities in targeted states. As part of its goal to reach at least 2 million voters this cycle, the VoteRiders team, along with many of its almost 900 partner organizations and 5,800+ volunteers, will contact 10,000 voters in key states throughout the month via letter-writing and text-banking.

The National Month of Action will also be marked by official proclamations from Governor Evers of Wisconsin, Mayor Johnson of Milwaukee, Mayor Rhodes-Conway of Madison, Mayor Duggan of Detroit, Mayor Gallego of Phoenix, and Mayor Dyer of Orlando.

“There are currently around 25 million citizens of voting age without a government-issued photo ID.” said Lauren Kunis, CEO and Executive Director of VoteRiders. “In 2021 alone, seven states enacted new or harsher voter ID laws, and in 2022 so far, voter ID measures are already pending in an additional 21 states. We know this issue isn’t going away. VoteRiders is in the solutions business.

We are here to help educate and assist voters in getting the ID they need – and the confidence they need – to cast a ballot in this year’s highly consequential election.”

While voter ID laws can have devastating effects on voter participation across the board, they have a disproportionate impact on specific communities:

  • 1 in 4 voting-age Black Americans do not have current, government-issued photo ID
  • 18% of American citizens aged 18-24 as well as those age 65+ do not have photo ID with their current address and name
  • 34% of women do not have ready access to proof of citizenship with their current legal name
  • 1 in 4 of the 61 million adults with a disability do not have a government-issued photo ID.

VoteRiders has also continued its partnership with Galaxy Theatres as part of April’s National Month of Action. Galaxy will air a special 10th anniversary voter ID PSA on all its screens in their theaters in Arizona, California, Nevada, Texas, and Washington, and will continue to run several VoteRiders PSAs in the same regions throughout the midterm elections. VoteRiders’ official Voter ID Information Cards will be distributed in Galaxy’s theater lobbies across the country.

As the nation’s leading nonprofit focused solely on voter ID awareness and education, VoteRiders is dedicated to mitigating this crisis through providing real and effective solutions. The organization offers digital resources and in-person services to voters including:

  • The most comprehensive and user-friendly digital voter ID resource hub available, including detailed guides on topics like rules for first-time voters, unique resources for the transgender and nonbinary community, and the difference between REAL ID and voter ID
  • An interactive digital map with in-person and mail-in voter ID laws for each state
  • A 24/7 voter ID chatbot as well as Helpline
  • Free rides to the DMV and other logistical assistance
  • Voter ID Clinics around the country serving at-risk voters including people facing homelessness, folks with former felony convictions, and veterans.

For more information about each state’s voter ID laws, and to sign up to volunteer, donate, or partner with VoteRiders, visit www.voteriders.org.