The following letter was sent to both the House and Senate members of the 152nd General Assembly on behalf of the Delaware Voting Rights Coalition (DVRC).
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January 23, 2023
Members of the 152nd General Assembly,
As the legislative session begins, the members of the Delaware Voting Rights Coalition would like to extend congratulations on your election to the 152nd General Assembly. Our coalition may already be familiar to many of you, but with new faces in Dover, we would like to use this opportunity to provide you with more insight into our efforts and priorities for 2023.
The Delaware Voting Rights Coalition is the first statewide, non-partisan coalition of voting rights organizations and advocates in Delaware. We are committed to ensuring all eligible Delaware voters have the freedom to vote in a meaningful, transparent, safe, and secure manner. We do so by encouraging voters and policymakers to consider reforms that will improve access to voting, and educating and empowering communities — especially communities of color, people who speak English as a second language, people involved in the justice system, people with disabilities, and young people — to identify and remedy barriers to the ballot box.
We support reforms that remove barriers to voting for all eligible voters, and are ready to work with legislators, local election officials, and the Department of Elections to make these reform recommendations a reality.
This year we are advocating for reforms that:
1. Improve accessibility for voters with disabilities; and
2. Ensure eligible incarcerated individuals can exercise their constitutional right to vote.
Our continued long-term efforts include reforms that:
3. Allow eligible Delaware voters the choice to vote-by-mail; and
4. Extend the voter registration deadline.
With the 2024 election season on the horizon, the fight for voting rights in 2023 remains as critical as ever. The Delaware Voting Rights Coalition is committed to providing community-based support, advocacy, and education to achieve these goals. We invite you to join our virtual coalition meetings, and take advantage of our coalition resources and expertise to assist your legislative efforts.
Thank you for your time and commitment to advancing policies that protect and expand Delawareans’ access to participating in our democracy. We look forward to collaborating with you and your office staff.
The Delaware Voting Rights Coalition
Please contact Helen Salita at [email protected] to get in touch with our coalition.