BREAKING: Vote.org and Elias Law Group Lawsuit Succeeds in Striking Down “Wet Signature” Law in Texas

WASHINGTON– Today, Vote.org released the following statement after a federal court in Texas struck down the state’s “wet signature” law in response to a lawsuit filed by the Elias Law Group on behalf of Vote.org:

“Today is a hopeful day for democracy. Texas’ wet signature law prevented eligible voters from registering to vote, disproportionately targeting underrepresented groups — especially people of color, low-income voters, and young people — across the Lone Star State,” said Andrea Hailey, CEO of Vote.org.“ This law had nothing to do with determining whether someone trying to register was qualified and created an undue burden on voters, mirroring discriminatory voter laws that were tailor-made to prevent people of color from accessing the vote for more than a century after the ratification of the 15th Amendment. Our democracy only succeeds if we can all take part in its care. With today’s victory in Texas, we are one step closer to ensuring that our democracy is for and by the people. We are so grateful to Marc Elias and the Elias Law Group for representing us in this case and we look forward to continuing our partnership together into the future.”

Vote.org is a 501(c)(3) nonpartisan nonprofit using technology to simplify political engagement and increase turnout among young people and voters of color. In addition to the 39 million people who used Vote.org’s online voting tools during the last general election, the organization helped more than 4.2 million voters register and reached voters of color and young voters more than 651 million times through our GOTV program in 2020.