Voting Rights

Common Cause Rhode Island is sponsoring two free, online events to gather Rhode Islanders’ perspectives on changes to: how government bodies hold public meetings; and how the state holds its elections.

Voters can also call nonpartisan hotline at 866-OUR-VOTE. On Tuesday, voters who have questions or encounter problems can get help from trained volunteers who are part of the nation’s largest and longest-running nonpartisan voter assistance program.

A coalition of 20 community and voting rights groups called for Governor Gina M. Raimondo to issue an executive order allowing the state Board of Elections to count ballots that are postmarked by November 3rd and received by November 6th, and to count any ballots received by mail that arrive on November 4th.

If you choose to vote by mail, it’s important that you return your application early. When you get your ballot, return that early too. We call that “flattening the mail ballot curve.” 

In an important win for voting rights, the Supreme Court today rejected efforts to block Rhode Island from eliminating witness/notary requirements for vote by mail in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The state had agreed to drop the requirements via consent decree, resolving a lawsuit brought on behalf of Common Cause of Rhode Island and others.

Two weeks ago, the state of Rhode Island agreed to eliminate witness/notary requirements for vote by mail throughout the 2020 elections due to the COVID-19 pandemic, in a consent decree resolving a lawsuit. Today, the Republican National Committee and the Rhode Island Republican Party sought a stay of that consent decree from the U.S. Supreme Court.