Michelle Obama, coalition of organizations vow to register a million new voters
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Former first lady Michelle Obama wrote in a letter Sunday that her voting rights organization, in concert with a coalition of other civic organizations, plan to register more than a million new voters ahead of this year's midterm elections.
Why it matters: The results of the 2022 midterms will have significant political consequences, as Democrats try to maintain their narrow margin of control.
- The move also comes as the Senate remains deadlocked on passing federal voting rights legislation and as Republican-led state legislatures across the country continue to enact voting restrictions.
The big picture: In the letter, Obama outlined several goals that her organization, When We All Vote, would try to accomplish alongside a coalition of 30 other groups, including the NAACP and Stacey Abrams' Fair Fight Action. These goals include:
- Registering a million new voters across the country;
- Recruiting and training at least 100,000 volunteers to register and turn out voters;
- Organizing at least 100,000 Americans to contact their Senators to advocate for the passage of the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act;
- Recruiting thousands of lawyers to protect voters in states where "the freedom to vote is threatened";
The letter, entitled "Fight for our vote," was initially published as an ad in the New York Times on Sunday, per Politico.
What they're saying: “One year ago, we witnessed an unprecedented assault on our Capitol and our democracy,” Obama wrote.
- "From Georgia and Florida to Iowa and Texas, states passed laws designed to make it harder for Americans to vote. And in other state legislatures across the nation, lawmakers have attempted to do the same.”
- "We've got to vote like the future of our democracy depends on it."
- "We stand united in our conviction to organize and turn out voters in the 2022 midterm elections, and make our democracy work for all of us."
