Protected tens of thousands of voters from disfranchisement, intimidation, suppression, and election manipulation, and secured new precedents around the Ku Klux Klan Act and the Voting Rights Act.
Protecting Free & Fair Elections
Our Work
Without free, fair, and secure elections, voters have no voice, little control over the direction of the country; and few ways to correct course when things go awry.
Elections are the linchpin of our democracy. Holding elections, and ensuring that power changes hands in accordance with their outcomes, is the essence of democratic self-government. By defending them, we also protect our rights and our system of government.
This takes two steps. First, we defend the process of holding elections. We do so by making sure election officials are allowed to do their work without interference; that election systems are secure; and that politicians are unable to dictate the outcome or manipulate election rules.
Second, we protect voters’ ability to participate meaningfully in the process, free from intimidation and harassment.
By ensuring that elections remain free, fair, and secure, we maintain our collective ability to shape the future of the country — or, when needed, to change course. In that, we protect voters’ trust in the results, even when their preferred candidates lose.
- Build secure, accessible, and accurate election systems and processes that are free from interference from foreign adversaries or domestic political actors.
- Create guardrails that ensure voters and candidates abide by the outcomes of every election.
- Foster public confidence in the fact that elections are free, fair, and secure.
Helped defend the 2020, 2022, and 2024 elections from attempts to manipulate and subvert a free and fair result, and assisted in the passage of reforms to the Electoral Count Act.
Defending the rights of eligible voters
Protect Democracy filed a lawsuit in 2024 to restore the rights of eligible voters in the state of Virginia.
October 7, 2024
Unraveling the Rise of Mass Voter Challenges
How voter challenge laws are being abused to disrupt the election process.
June 17, 2024
Free speech and voter intimidation after Counterman v. Colorado
How to defend Section 11(b) of the Voting Rights Act under the updated “true threats” exception to the First Amendment.
July 7, 2023
Six Principles for Federal Legislation to Combat Election Subversion
Congress can respond to a growing risk of election subversion with six common-sense reforms that protect against partisan interference and decrease the chances of future post-election turmoil.
August 1, 2021