Vote.org, formerly Long Distance Voter, is a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that is based in the United States.[1][2] It provides online voter guides for every state, including voter registration forms, absentee ballot applications, and information on deadlines, directions, and ID and residency requirements.[3] The organization is best known for large-scale voter registration programs, registering 4 million voters in the 2020 election cycle alone.[4]
History
Vote.org was founded by Debra Cleaver in 2008. The organization was named Long Distance Voter at the time, and sought to increase voter turnout by providing greater access to absentee voting information online.[5][6] The organization was volunteer-run and did not have any full-time staff from 2008 to 2016. Cleaver became the first full-time employee in January 2016.
Long Distance Voter relaunched as Vote.org in April 2016, and was accepted into Y Combinator in June 2016. The mission was updated to reflect a new goal of 100% voter turnout.[6][7][8] During the Y Combinator demo day, Cleaver pitched the then-novel use of unsolicited text messages as a way of registering voters.[9] In Fall 2016, Vote.org worked with Hustle to run a nationwide SMS peer-to-peer voter registration program in which they sent millions of text messages to unregistered voters. The program was then expanded to include polling place location information for registered voters. A quantitative evaluation of this program found that these messages increased turnout by 0.2 percentage points.[10] Since then, Vote.org has run many experiments, primarily using randomized controlled trials (RCTs) measuring the effectiveness of voter turnout tactics and messaging.[11][12][13]
In March 2018, Vote.org launched ElectionDay.org, a campaign that encouraged CEOs of large companies to voluntarily give their employees time off to vote on Election Day.[14] As of 2020, over 1000 companies had opted to participate, including Twitter, T-Mobile, Lyft, and Adidas.[15]
In October 2019, Vote.org purchased billboards in Mississippi with the wrong date.[16]
In June 2020, Vote.org, the Alliance for Retired Americans, and the American Civil Liberties Union of Maine filed suit against Maine to extend the deadline of mail-in ballots. The lawsuit alleged that Maine's voting systems were inaccessible and out-of-date, thereby creating barriers to voting. The lawsuit highlighted a lack of voter registration options including no online option, a lack of prepaid postage on mail-in ballots, ballot collection hurdles, an Election Day receipt deadline, and rejection of absentee ballots that had technical defects.[17] In September 2020, Superior Court judge William Stokes, citing how soon the election was approaching, did not require changes for the 2020 election.[18] In October 2020, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court upheld the trial court finding as the petitioners did not meet their burden of proof.[19]
In 2021, Vote.org advocated for passing the For the People Act, a U.S. bill which expands automatic and same-day voter registration, voter access mail-in and online ballot infrastructure, and new limits on campaign spending.[20][21] Vote.org worked with Fair Fight Action and When We All Vote to on For the People Act as well as to oppose changes in Georgia's voter ID laws.[21]
Also in 2021, Vote.org partnered with the CW network and the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights under law to launch the Freedom to Vote nonpartisan initiative, which aimed to increase content promoting voter registration and civic participation on a number of different platforms.[22] This is an expansion of the CW's and Vote.org previous Vote Actually campaign in 2020.[23]
In 2023, the DOJ filed a statement of interest in a lawsuit challenging a Florida voter registration law that mandates people to sign their name with a wet signature, with physical pen and paper. Voting advocacy groups Vote.org, the Florida Alliance for Retired Americans and the Florida State Conference of the NAACP filed the lawsuit against Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd and other state election officials.[24][25][26]
In September 2023, Taylor Swift posted an Instagram message asking her 272 million followers to register to vote and linking to Vote.org. Vote.org reported more than 35,000 applications submitted on National Voter Registration Day, due in part to Swift's superstar influence.[27][28][29][30][31] For the partnership, Vote.org and Swift were awarded a Webby Award for Best Creator or Influencer Collaboration, Features (Social) in 2024.[32][33][34]
For 2024, Vote.org has a goal of registering 8 million voters, having registered 500,000 as of April 19, 2024.[2]
In July 2024, Vote.org helped to register more than 100,000 voters in the five days after Joe Bidendropped out. Nearly 85% of the new voters registering on Vote.org are under 35 and 18-year-old voters alone make up 18%. Vote.org has an over an 80% conversion rate from registration to the ballot box.[35]
Organization
In the summer of 2019, the organization's board terminated founder and CEO Debra Cleaver, citing "differences in opinion".[36] This resulted in losses in funding from some donors loyal to Cleaver.[37] Cleaver was replaced by board member Andrea Hailey,[38] and filed a wrongful termination lawsuit in August 2022.[39][needs update]
In May 2024, an investigative article in The Chronicle of Philanthropy, detailed ongoing issues at Vote.org including regulatory and compliance failures and an ongoing lawsuit for disability discrimination.[40]
Awards
Anthem Award
2024 - Taylor Swift and Vote.org for Human & Civil Rights - Best Influencer Collaboration, Awareness & Media Categories[41]
Webby Award
2024 - Taylor Swift and Vote.org for Best Creator or Influencer Collaboration, Features (Social) in 2024.[32][33][34]
