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Public Policy

The goal of the Disability Policy Collaboration is to impact national public policy for people with developmental disabilities, including those with cerebral palsy and intellectual disability, and their friends, families and loved ones.

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Voter Rights

OCLB Voter's Primary Primer

UCP has received a number of e-mails asking how presidential primaries and caucuses work, and about how one gets registered or signed up to participate. We thought we would use those questions as a springboard to this quick voting primer explaining primaries and caucuses, and how to register to vote.

Introduction

Every state has its own voting laws and voter registration policy. While states are free to choose certain election primary dates, there are federal election laws that all states must follow. We have prepared this primer so that you can understand the "basics" of voting, but you must follow up with your own state election office to find about the specific voting laws and practices that apply to your state. Later in this primer we insert links that identify state Web sites and phone numbers for all states. We hope that this information will help you be prepared and legally eligible to vote in your state and federal elections in 2004.

What does Federal law regulate?

Federal election laws apply equally to all states and territories that participate in electing the President and Vice President of the United States, and vote for United States Senators or Representatives. The major Federal election laws establish:

  • Who can vote: All United States citizens age 18 and over may vote;
  • No taxes or tests: Individual states may not use poll taxes or literacy tests as part of the voter registration process;
  • National elections in November: The federal election for President and Vice President shall occur every four years on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. Elections for United States Senators and Members of Congress shall occur every two years on first Tuesday after the first Monday in November; and
  • Accessible polling sites: All polling places must be accessible to people with disabilities, including blind people.

What does State law regulate?

State laws regulate most of the nuts and bolts parts of elections. For example, state laws:

  • Describe the voter and election registration process: Individual states create and enforce the voter registration process used in the state. Voter registration activities typically include setting:
    • Voter qualification: Some states do not permit people to register to vote if they have been convicted of felony crimes or currently are serving time or are on probation for a criminal offense. Some states also limit a person’s right to vote if the person currently has a guardian, conservator or similar self-designated or state appointed surrogate decision maker.
    • Registration process: How and where a person goes to register. Individual states determine which people, locations and business or governmental entities can register voters; whether voters can be registered door-to-door; whether voters can register by mail or over the Internet, etc.
    • Registration deadlines: How many days before a primary or general election a person must be registered in order to vote in the election.
    • Party registration or affiliation: Some states may require or allow a person to state a party preference or affiliation, or to state a preference to be considered a political independent.
    • Registration renewal: Some states permit a voter’s registration to be active until the person informs the state elections office of a new address. Other states require registration renewal whether or not the voter has moved.

  • Decide whether to hold state primary elections or state caucuses to elect state delegates to presidential conventions: States [and often parties within states] have the option of choosing whether and how to select presidential convention delegates. Some states do not use either caucuses or primaries to choose the delegates. No two states choose their delegates the same way.
    • Primaries: Primaries are ballot voting events. Voters choose their preferred candidate from a slate of candidates, and the votes are converted to percentages that then are converted to delegates.
    • Caucuses: Caucuses typically are "meeting" events rather than "ballot" events. Often, however, the meetings result in selected ways of indicating individual voter preferences for candidates, which then are converted by the caucus meeting process into a percentage of total support for a given candidate.

  • Decide when and how primary elections or caucuses are held: States are free to devise and implement their own structure for holding primary elections. The primary practices vary greatly from state to state. Primary elections to select presidential delegates also vary greatly.
    • Closed primary/caucus: Some states limit voter participation in presidential primaries/caucuses to voters who have declared themselves to be members of a specific party. States that use the closed party primary usually require that the voter declare her or his party preference or affiliation some period of days or weeks before the primary is held. Voters who do not declare preferences by deadline dates may not be permitted to participate in a closed primary.
    • Open primary/caucus: Some states, perhaps even a majority, permit open primaries or caucuses, where any properly authorized voter is permitted to cast a ballot or participate in a caucus, even without declaring party affiliation or preference.
    • Authorization process: The states are free, in setting out the primary methods [primary or caucus; open or closed] to determine what level of "registration" is necessary to participate in a primary. Some states do not require a voter to be "registered" to participate in primary activities. Other states might require not only advanced registration, but also party declaration.

What is the most important things for you to remember about election participation?

We think there are several things you can do to be sure you are able to exercise your right to vote for the candidates who best represent your views and wishes. We recommend that you:

  • Check out your state’s election laws months in advance of a primary election/caucus or general election.

For VOTER REGISTRATION Information:

For SPECIFIC STATE VOTER INFORMATION: (When and how the state presidential primary is held, whether there are any specific voter qualifications, etc.) Both major parties offer Web site links to their state organizations in each state. Use these links to gain direct access to specific voter information from your state, including primary dates, voter qualifications, etc.

  • Get your state election date and qualification information from the Democratic National Committee site
  • Get your state election date and qualification information from the Republican National Committee site
  • Learn about any physical or cognitive barriers that might prevent you from registering for or exercising your vote. We suggest you contact your state protection and advocacy system for help in navigating your state’s election laws and what accommodations are available to or required for people with physical or cognitive impairments. Locate your state P&A contact.

Conclusion

We cannot emphasize strongly enough that every state does its elections differently. We hope this information helps you begin to understand the election process. We also hope that the links connect you with the people, organizations and governmental offices in your state who will best be able to help you.

Adapted from a publication by Our Children Left Behind (OCLB)