Friday, March 16, 2018

Email from Hillary Clinton: Our most fundamental right


Election season is exciting, and it's also a time to take stock of where we are as a nation. Are we paying attention? Are we coming out to participate in primaries and local elections? And are we making sure that our most fundamental right is accessible to every eligible voter?
This week, I've been traveling abroad, talking to people about how our countries have grown and changed over the last few years. I was so proud to be able to share with folks here that Conor Lamb won his race on Tuesday, thanks to the hard work of organizers and volunteers in the 18th district of Pennsylvania who made their voices heard.
But in Pennsylvania and across the country, access to the ballot box is obstructed by one unnecessary measure or another. Working to ensure that the right to vote is protected is one of the most critical issues of our time -- and that's why I'm so grateful to the team at iVote, another one of our Onward Together partners, for the work that they do.
Take a moment to learn more about iVote below, then recommit to vote in your next local election. It couldn't be more important.
Onward!
Hillary

Onward Together works to build a brighter future for generations to come by supporting groups that encourage people to organize in their communities or run for office. Because you're an important part of Onward Together, we wanted you to get a chance to know these groups a little bit better. To learn more about Onward Together, click here.
The organization: iVote
The organizers: Campaign veterans Ellen Kurz and Jeremy Bird
The mission: To secure voting rights for all Americans by investing in campaigns to bring universal, automatic voter registration to multiple states and by electing voting rights champions to be the chief election administrator in the office of the Secretary of State in battleground states.
The story: Founded in 2014, iVote went on the offensive by working to elect pro-voting Secretaries of State in key battleground states. Whereas voting rights groups have relied on challenges in court after rights had been impinged, or defeating efforts to further erode rights, iVote takes a different tack - 'flipping the script' from playing defense on voter suppression efforts to going on offense.
The latest: In 2016, iVote ran a petition campaign in Nevada to put automatic voter registration on the ballot. After being successfully certified, iVote is now focused on working with partners to win the ballot initiative in November '18. iVote is also working to advance several pieces of legislation that would put automatic voter registration on the ballot in more states. Earlier this year, iVote announced that they plan to spend $5 million in efforts to elect Democratic, pro-voting rights secretaries of state in seven target states of Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, Michigan, Ohio, New Mexico, and Iowa.
The next step: Head to ivoteforamerica.org to learn more and get involved ahead of the next primaries, then check out their new video on why fighting back against voter suppression is so important.