Vote.org & the 2020 Election - Part 1

Vote.org is here, working for voters. This is not a moment, or just a movement. This is a mission. In these uncertain times, our commitment to helping all voters navigate the rapid and unprecedented changes in voting in 2020 has not wavered. In particular, we know the barriers our most vulnerable populations face, and we are focused on ensuring that COVID-19 is not leveraged to further disenfranchise any voter. No one should ever have to choose between their health and participating in democracy. We’ve done the work to foster the relationships, collaborations, and the partnerships that will help voters cast their ballot during this crisis.

As the COVID-19 pandemic creates new barriers to safe and fair elections, we are working around-the-clock to do what we have always done best: execute digital and scalable voter registration and get out the vote efforts.

Over the past few months, Vote.org’s growth has been exponential. Our site exceeded 30 million users and saw traffic increase at a rate of 52x what we saw in 2018. Thanks to you, 20,000 more individual donors have contributed to our cause, quadrupling our grassroots strength. We are people-powered and our team spends every day thinking of how we can best serve voters. Together we have:

• Verified a total of 8,231,879 registration statuses and 1,403,294 this year.
• Registered a total of 3,391,700 new voters and 546,800 this year.
• Helped a total of 2,671,911 voters request an absentee ballot and 496,699 this year.

With these numbers we are on track to serve 12x the people we served in 2018.

Our team has built the infrastructure necessary to meet everyone -- from a first-time to a habitual voter -- where they are. Voters trust us as a leader in the civic space, and we take the responsibility of facilitating their participation in democracy incredibly seriously. We are proud of our reach and the work we undertake to ensure voters have 24/7 access to the information and tools they need to vote.

This moment is no different. This pandemic threatens voting access and creates fertile ground for dangerous misinformation. That’s why our team moved quickly to implement the first comprehensive COVID-19 electoral resource. And it’s clear people are hungry for clarity. In its first month, our COVID-19 webpage had 40,314 views making Vote.org a rapid response resource hub for voters and organizations alike. We also sent over 4.5 million urgent election updates directly to the phones and inboxes of people affected by COVID-related primary election changes. Knowing how crucial these tools are, we will continue to provide critical infrastructure for our partners so we can scale together.

We also know that the most vulnerable voters will be the ones most affected by the COVID-related election changes. We have always focused our robust voter turnout initiatives on the low-propensity voters traditional campaigns tend to ignore. In 2020 we’ll be doubling down to address the unique challenges that the pandemic creates at scale.

Vote.org recognizes this is an all-hands-on-deck mission. We are grateful to work alongside organizations dedicated to protecting not just the voter, but the ballot as well. We have deepened our collaboration with partners such as Gannett Media Group's USA Today, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Vote Save America, and The Andrew Goodman Foundation. We've also launched exciting new partnerships with: The Webby Awards, NAACP Youth Coalition, GLSEN, wikiHow, and the Young Entertainment Activists. The trust our brand has garnered in the civic space has yielded the support of public officials, advocacy organizations, and new voters who have amplified our efforts by sharing our tools on social media.

The big picture is clear for us: We must engage with every eligible voter as turnout is the only way we can protect democracy. While we recognize our goal is ambitious, we are invigorated by the work ahead and by your support.

If you’d like to support us in 2020, we’d appreciate any amount you’d like to give.