Voter's Bill of Rights

Know the Rules and Regulations of Your State’s Voting Requirements!

In a recent primary election in Chicago, of 5,914 provisional ballots cast, only 416 were counted! Many were disqualified because of a combination of hyper-technical provisions of the Illinois election code and a lack of training and education for poll workers on how to limit disenfranchisement as much as possible.

There is no uniform standard on how states should handle provisional ballots. Some states allow provisional ballots to be counted even if they are cast in the wrong polling place, but at least 16 states, including Illinois, throw the ballots out if they are filed in the wrong precinct. Voters are often not informed that they are in the wrong precinct and that their vote will not be counted.

From polling hours, to rules regarding provisional ballots, to delineating who may and may not go into the booth with the voter, every state has its own set of regulations on voter registration and casting a ballot. The problem is not just that most voters have no way of knowing their rights—but in many cases, even the volunteers at the polling places are unsure and may give misleading or wrong information.

Election Protection is in the process of developing state specific Voter’s Bill of Rights. So far, the rules and regulations are available for the following--it’s important to read them carefully, because each state has its own peculiarities and nuances: