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.
Related News & Resources
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Election certification, explained
- Protecting Elections
- Research & Analysis
- Analysis
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Voter list maintenance, explained
- Protecting Elections
- Research & Analysis
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Stopping the disenfranchisement of military and overseas voters in North Carolina
- Protecting Elections
- Litigation
- Case Documents
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DOGE and state voter rolls
- Protecting Elections
- Research & Analysis
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How the Trump administration plans to interfere with the 2026 elections, and what you can do about it
For the first time in modern American history, the machinery of the federal government — which is meant to serve our democracy — is being turned against our elections.
March 26, 2026
The SAVE tool, explainedÂ
The use of the SAVE tool are part of a larger effort to weaponize government data and tilt the 2026 elections before a single ballot is cast.Â
March 26, 2026
How the Trump administration plans to interfere with the 2026 elections, and what you can do about it
For the first time in modern American history, the machinery of the federal government — which is meant to serve our democracy — is being turned against our elections.
March 26, 2026
What democracy means
Democracy is a system of government where the people freely select their leaders and those leaders are constrained while in office.
March 23, 2026
DOJ’s attempt to acquire state voter data, explained
DOJ's efforts to acquire state voter date is laying the groundwork for purges of eligible voters, election subversion, and the invasion of fundamental privacy rights.
February 10, 2026
Federal judge restores thousands of Virginians’ voting rights in historic ruling
In our lawsuit challenging Virginia’s racially-motivated felony disenfranchisement law, a federal court paved the way for hundreds of thousands of Virginians to have their voting rights restored.
January 22, 2026
Protect Democracy and the Campaign Legal Center file Supreme Court brief arguing that Mississippi can set its own ballot receipt deadlines
On Jan. 9, the Campaign Legal Center and Protect Democracy filed an amicus brief arguing that Mississippi is within its rights to set its own ballot receipt deadlines.
January 9, 2026
Protect Democracy, CDT, and the Leadership Conference release new analysis of federal efforts to access voter data
In our explainer, we examine the potential harms associated with the Trump administration’s latest privacy-invasive actions.
December 15, 2025
The introverts’ guide to fighting for democracy
You’ve taken the first and most difficult step: committing to action. Now come the fun parts!
October 15, 2025
No, the president can’t ban mail voting
The president does not have any legal authority over the administration of mail voting for three main reasons
October 1, 2025
Former Republican members of Congress file amicus brief supporting the Voting Rights Act in the U.S. Supreme Court
The brief emphasizes that Section 2 represents a durable, bipartisan legislative achievement that reflects Congress's constitutional responsibility to protect voting rights.
September 9, 2025
