Stop the White House Ban on Voter Registration Help for Disabled Americans
The Issue
The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has proposed a rule that would block anyone from using federal grant money for voter registration drives or what the proposal calls "related activities," according to ProPublica. If the rule is finalized, it could cut off the help that many disabled, elderly and homebound Americans depend on to register to vote.
Congress passed the Help America Vote Act in 2002, and President George W. Bush signed it, to make voting accessible for people with disabilities. Today about $10 million a year supports 57 nonprofit groups reaching all 50 states plus D.C., Puerto Rico, U.S. territories and tribal communities.
Staff from these groups visit nursing homes and assisted living facilities, where many residents have no internet or ride to an election office. In Nebraska, one advocate helped a veteran with a traumatic brain injury, who had trouble writing, update his address so he could vote this fall. At a small rural facility, a young resident told her it was the first time anyone had offered to help him register.
This work is nonpartisan by law. Disability Rights Nebraska sends staff out in pairs from different parties. On one June visit, 30% of newly registered voters were Republicans, 20% were Democrats, and half were independents or third-party voters.
Barriers remain. In 2024, voters with disabilities were more than twice as likely to report trouble registering as voters without disabilities, according to Rutgers University survey data. That gap reflects roughly 740,000 people.
Legal experts say the rule ignores programs Congress created and has funded for years. Samuel Bagenstos, a former OMB general counsel, called it "a massive across-the-board power grab," according to ProPublica.
The rule would not take effect until after the 2026 midterms, but it could shape who gets to vote in 2028. OMB Director Russell Vought can withdraw it before it is finalized. Sign the petition to tell OMB Director Russell Vought to drop this ban and protect voter registration help for disabled Americans, veterans and seniors before 2028.
468
The Issue
The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has proposed a rule that would block anyone from using federal grant money for voter registration drives or what the proposal calls "related activities," according to ProPublica. If the rule is finalized, it could cut off the help that many disabled, elderly and homebound Americans depend on to register to vote.
Congress passed the Help America Vote Act in 2002, and President George W. Bush signed it, to make voting accessible for people with disabilities. Today about $10 million a year supports 57 nonprofit groups reaching all 50 states plus D.C., Puerto Rico, U.S. territories and tribal communities.
Staff from these groups visit nursing homes and assisted living facilities, where many residents have no internet or ride to an election office. In Nebraska, one advocate helped a veteran with a traumatic brain injury, who had trouble writing, update his address so he could vote this fall. At a small rural facility, a young resident told her it was the first time anyone had offered to help him register.
This work is nonpartisan by law. Disability Rights Nebraska sends staff out in pairs from different parties. On one June visit, 30% of newly registered voters were Republicans, 20% were Democrats, and half were independents or third-party voters.
Barriers remain. In 2024, voters with disabilities were more than twice as likely to report trouble registering as voters without disabilities, according to Rutgers University survey data. That gap reflects roughly 740,000 people.
Legal experts say the rule ignores programs Congress created and has funded for years. Samuel Bagenstos, a former OMB general counsel, called it "a massive across-the-board power grab," according to ProPublica.
The rule would not take effect until after the 2026 midterms, but it could shape who gets to vote in 2028. OMB Director Russell Vought can withdraw it before it is finalized. Sign the petition to tell OMB Director Russell Vought to drop this ban and protect voter registration help for disabled Americans, veterans and seniors before 2028.
The Decision Makers
Supporter Voices
Petition Updates
Share this petition
Petition created on September 30, 2026