10/30/26 - Friday Video Share: "Why Americans with disabilities struggle to vote"
Why Americans with disabilities struggle to vote
Vox - October 28, 2026
This is almost exactly a ten year old video about voting accessibility. How does it compare with today, a few days away from the 2026 midterm elections in the U.S.? How does it compare with voting in other countries around the world? Share your thoughts, observations, and experiences at: apulrang@icloud.com. For me, two things come to mind:
- I notice that disabled activists' feelings about mail-in voting have shifted somewhat. In 2016, it was pretty common for disability rights activists to argue that the key was making sure disabled people could vote in person. While we would agree that mail-in should always be an option, we tended to see it is a somewhat of a lesser solution to the problem of accessibility. Now, especially since the height of COVID-19, mail-in voting for everyone, with fewer administrative barriers and justifications required, is a key component of voting access campaigns.
- Looking back, it does seem like in 2016 and up through about 2022 or so, there was a definite increase in attention on disabled people voting, and on disability community priorities in politics. I haven't seen one article or video like this one by a mainstream, (not disability-specific), publication. I'm sure I may have missed some. But a few years ago, you didn't have to look much to find several. It feels like we've taken a step backwards on this.
Still, it felt good watching this clip again. Maybe the next best thing to making forward progress is being able to remember how past progress was possible, and maybe could be repeated.
Have an amazing weekend!
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