As a voter with a disability, my vote allows me to have a say in the laws and policies that impact my life, including access to transportation, employment, community, and so much more. In 2020, 11% of voters nationwide were people with disabilities. I am joining many other disabled voters today to urge you to support the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which will protect our democracy from laws that discriminate against voters based on their race or background. Despite the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Helping America Vote Act, voters with disabilities were two times more likely to face barriers while vote compared to voters without disabilities in the 2020 elections. And disabled voters of color faced compounding barriers. For democracy to work for all of us, it must be accessible to us all. That is why I ask you to protect the voting access of your constituents, including myself and the roughly 1 in 4 adults in American communities that have a disability.

Congress has a critical opportunity to protect voting accessibility by passing the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. As a voter with a disability, my access to voting has been restricted by the pandemic and by laws that make it harder and harder to vote. Voters with disabilities, who made up over 11% of all votes cast in the 2020 general elections, already face many barriers to voting. Even though Congress passed the Americans with Disabilities Act over 30 years ago, people with disabilities were two times more likely to face barriers when voting in 2020, compared to voters without disabilities. And disabled people of color face some of the highest barriers to the ballot box! I urge you to protect the access to voting by supporting the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. The time is now, access to voting cannot wait!

As a voter with a disability, my right to vote gives me a say in the laws and policies that impact my life. These laws and policies determine my access to a job, to the transportation I need to get around, and to my ability to live in my community. Even with federal legislation like the Americans with Disabilities Act, voters with disabilities were two times more likely to face difficulties voting compared to voters without disabilities in the 2020 elections. And disabled voters of color faced compounding barriers. Unfortunately, some lawmakers in my state are adding additional barriers to make it even harder for myself and my community to vote. I urge you to support the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which will protect the voting rights of myself and other disabled voters among your constituents from laws in our state that seek to take away our freedom to vote and engage in elections. Our democracy depends on it!