How to Use This Memo Lead with the most alarming point and cite the official publishers confidently to establish your authority. Stay calm and factual in every conversation because the documented evidence is powerful enough to speak for itself.
1. THE POINT — In Louisiana, the governor just canceled a congressional election after people had already sent in their ballots.
WHY IT MATTERS — This breaks the basic rules of a fair system. If a leader can throw out votes that were already cast, no one's voice is safe. It takes away the predictability we need to trust our government.
IF CHALLENGED — Some say this was a necessary legal move. However, state law only allows an election to be canceled for a natural disaster, and votes were already cast when this order was issued.
SOURCE TO CITE — 19th Judicial District Court, Parish of East Baton Rouge
2. THE POINT — The Department of Justice is trying to force states to hand over your Social Security and driver’s license numbers for a national database.
WHY IT MATTERS — This is a massive grab for your personal information. They want to use federal records to flag people and remove them from local voter rolls. This puts your right to vote in the hands of federal agents instead of your local community.
IF CHALLENGED — Some claim this database prevents non-citizen voting. However, multiple courts have already found that federal authorities have no legal right to these private state lists.
SOURCE TO CITE — Brennan Center for Justice; Protect Democracy; The Guardian
3. THE POINT — Federal immigration and counter-terrorism agents are being sent to pressure state and local election offices.
WHY IT MATTERS — When armed federal agents show up at election hubs or polling places, it acts as intimidation. This pressure can scare people away from voting. It turns a simple neighborhood activity into a high-security zone that targets the most vulnerable.
IF CHALLENGED — Some argue this is for security. However, international observers find that deploying security forces around elections usually functions as voter intimidation rather than protection.
SOURCE TO CITE — Freedom House*; Democracy Docket; Marist Poll; National Association of Social Workers (NASW)
4. THE POINT — A new executive order tells the Post Office to stop delivering mail ballots unless the voter is on a federal "approved" list.
WHY IT MATTERS — This is a direct blockade of your mail. If the federal government decides you aren’t on their list, they can stop your ballot from ever being delivered. It allows the government to control who is allowed to participate in an election.
IF CHALLENGED — Some say this ensures only eligible voters use the mail. However, the Constitution gives states the power to run elections, and this order bypasses state authority to block authorized mail-in votes.
SOURCE TO CITE — Issue One; Brennan Center for Justice
5. THE POINT — Ohio and Texas are purging citizens from voter rolls right before the election using unreliable federal data.
WHY IT MATTERS — They are doing this during the 90-day "quiet period" when mass purges are usually banned. Legally registered citizens, including naturalized ones, are being kicked off. You might not realize you’ve been removed until you show up to vote and it is too late.
IF CHALLENGED — Some say they are just cleaning up cluttered rolls. However, conducting mass purges within 90 days of an election is federally prohibited because it creates errors that disenfranchise eligible voters.
SOURCE TO CITE — Campaign Legal Center; Voting Rights Lab; Votebeat
6. THE POINT — Politicians in Mississippi are redrawing maps mid-decade to spread 60,000 voters across different districts to gain an advantage.
WHY IT MATTERS — This is called "cracking" a district. It means politicians are picking their voters instead of letting the voters pick them. It dilutes your community's voice so it is much harder to hold anyone in power accountable for their decisions.
IF CHALLENGED — Some claim redistricting is a standard state right. However, doing this mid-cycle outside the standard ten-year window is a tactic used to lock in partisan power regardless of how people vote.
SOURCE TO CITE — Brookings Institution; Supreme Court of the United States
7. THE POINT — The proposed “Make Elections Great Again” (MEGA) Act represents the most extreme federal voting restrictions ever recorded.
WHY IT MATTERS — This law is designed to create huge hurdles for every American. It would require things like documentary proof of citizenship and could force millions of people to re-register. It makes the simple act of voting into a difficult and confusing process for everyone.
IF CHALLENGED — Some say this act protects the integrity of the vote. However, these rules are the most restrictive on record and create administrative traps that block eligible citizens from their rights.
SOURCE TO CITE — Congressman Kevin Mullin (CA-15); Issue One
8. THE POINT — Equipment failures and administrative changes are causing "primary election chaos" in counties across Texas.
WHY IT MATTERS — In some areas, residents were left with only one working voting machine. In others, local officials ended countywide voting based on debunked fraud claims. This chaos leads to long lines that force people to give up and leave without voting.
IF CHALLENGED — Some say these are just minor technical glitches. However, the NAACP has documented that these failures were caused by officials unilaterally changing rules and removing resources.
SOURCE TO CITE — The Victoria Advocate; NAACP
9. THE POINT — The tactics we see today match the patterns used in countries where democracy has been dismantled.
WHY IT MATTERS — Experts have seen this happen in places like Hungary and Turkey. It starts with small changes to rules, purging voter lists, and using emergency orders. Slowly, the system is rigged so those in power can never be voted out.
IF CHALLENGED — Some argue the U.S. system is too strong for this to happen. However, scholars note that the most dangerous democratic erosions look like legal procedures rather than sudden military takeovers.
SOURCE TO CITE — Freedom House; Journal of Democracy
10. THE POINT — If we lose fair elections, we lose our only way to hold the government accountable for our families’ safety.
WHY IT MATTERS — A fair election is the mechanism that defends every other protection we have, like our schools and our rights. If we lose the ability to vote people out, they no longer have to listen to us. This is about whether the people are still in charge of the government.
IF CHALLENGED — Some claim this is just about one side being afraid to lose. However, this is about whether the system itself still works to protect the voice of every citizen regardless of their party.
SOURCE TO CITE — V-Dem Institute*; Freedom House*
KEY PHRASES TO REMEMBER
- "Predictability defines a fair election."
- "Changing rules in the middle of the game."
- "A systematic assault on the franchise."
- "The mechanism that defends every other protection."
- "Accountability evaporates when rules are rigged."
FULL SOURCE LIST
- 19th Judicial District Court, Parish of East Baton Rouge
- Brennan Center for Justice
- Protect Democracy
- The Guardian
- Freedom House
- Democracy Docket
- Marist Poll
- National Association of Social Workers (NASW)
- Issue One
- Campaign Legal Center
- Voting Rights Lab
- Votebeat
- Brookings Institution
- Supreme Court of the United States
- Congressman Kevin Mullin (CA-15)
- The Victoria Advocate
- NAACP
- Journal of Democracy
- Levitsky, Steven and Ziblatt, Daniel, How Democracies Die
- V-Dem Institute