50 Years of Section 203: More Voices, Stronger Democracy | Language Access & Voting Rights Summit

Mission, History, and Impact: Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Section 203 Pre Summit Webinar

View slides from the Pre-Summit Webinar:

Slide Deck #1

Slide Deck #2

Additional Videos:

Camalah’s Story

Mr. Koo & Mrs. Mun’s Story

Cris’s Story

Medley

Does California Go Far Enough to Ensure Immigrant Inclusion in Our Democracy?

50th Anniversary of Section 203: More Voices, Stronger Democracy

This event was made possible by the generous support of the Evelyn & Walter Haas Jr. Fund and the Bloomfield Family Foundation.

SUGGESTED READING

Policy and Election Protection Reports

• Forging Ahead: Community Voices and the Impact of Language Access in the Electoral Process: Asian Law Caucus (2025)
• Breaking Barriers to the Ballot Box: Expanding Language Access for California Voters: California Language Access Working Group (2023)
• Language Access and Voting Rights: An Overview of Federal, State, and Local Policies: Demos (2024)
• Poll Observer Findings from California’s March 2024 Elections: Asian Law Caucus and California Common Cause (2024)
• California’s 2024 General Election Poll Observer Findings: Asian Law Caucus and California Common Cause (2025)
• From Paper to Ballot: How California authorities can better enforce language access laws and give more eligible voters equal access to the ballot: NALEO (2025)

Language Access Research from the UCLA Voting Rights Project

• The Effects of Section 203 Language Access Coverage on 2016 and 2020 Election Turnout, by Diego Casillas (2025): Quantitative investigation of whether bilingual voting requirements under Section 203 significantly increase Latino and Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) voter turnout, in a range of states
• The Efficacy of Translated Voting Materials, by Jessica Cobian (2025): Qualitative analysis of the impact providing language access in voting has on voter confidence and voter engagement efforts

Language Access History in California

• The CA Supreme Court’s Castro Decision and Its Historical and Cultural Context, by Jayme Rosenquist (2025): An examination of the California Supreme Court’s Castro decision that eliminated English-only elections in California, as well as the social and political context immediately before and after
• California’s Early Language Access Journey – AB 790 (1973) and the Roadmap for Modern Language Access Law, by Robert Janssen (2025): A history of California’s early laws establishing language access in voting immediately post-Castro and before Section 203, with an emphasis on the state law that created the first requirement for bilingual poll worker assistance
• California and Section 203’s Origins, by Madeleine Cale (2025): An in-depth look at California’s role in passing Section 203, with a focus on Congressman Edward Roybal of Los Angeles and his advocacy on behalf of California’s Spanish-speaking population
• Translating California Ballots into More Languages via 1982’s AB 742, by Marie Beld (2025): An examination of the 1982 California law that, for the first time, mandated language assistance in languages other than Spanish in California

Language Access Polling

• “Majority of California Voters Support Enhanced Language Access at the Ballot Box”: Polling on Californians’ attitudes on language access in elections, from UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies (2025)
• “Survey shows Californians want ballots in more languages”: Los Angeles Times coverage of Berkeley IGS poll (2025)

Community Commentary

• “California does not serve its immigrants well by lack of translated voting ballots”: Opinion Editorial by Deep Singh, Executive Director of Jakara Movement, Fresno Bee (2025)
• “How language assistance in voting made a difference in San Diego”: Opinion Editorial by Huy Tran, Executive Director of Viet Voices, San Diego Union-Tribune (2025)
• “Voters whose primary language isn’t English often disenfranchised”: Opinion Editorial by Jessica Cobian, Political Science PhD Candidate and Senior Fellow for the Voting Rights Project at UCLA, and Ramla Sahid, Executive Director of the Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans, San Diego Union-Tribune (2024)
• “How L.A. can stop excluding Latin American Indigenous language speakers”: Opinion Editorial by Jessica Cobian, et al, Los Angeles Times (2024)