The freedom to vote is facing far-reaching challenges this year. It isn’t just attacks on the voting process itself. It’s also an effort to make it more difficult to get on the rolls in the first place — including attacks on the crucial work of outside voter registration groups.
After Trump’s Executive Order on elections was largely blocked in court, the administration has moved to curb how newly naturalized citizens are offered voter registration, tightening federal pathways at the precise moment when access should be expanded. Some states including Florida, Texas and Arizona have in recent years enacted new laws that target the work of voter registration groups. These changes jeopardize the most tangible links between citizens and their democratic voice.
As we push back against these restrictive laws, we cannot slow the critical work of registering voters across the nation. If we do, millions of voters will risk falling off the voter rolls and into the abyss of “inactive voters.” Roughly 27 million Americans become “inactive voters” each year due to an address or name change, and most lose valid voter registration when they do.
There are also new voters we need to actively bring into the democratic process. Every year, nearly 4 million people turn 18, and hundreds of thousands become new citizens. Absent organized outreach, millions risk missing upcoming local elections and next year’s midterms.
That is where nonprofits step in. We are anchored in communities often left out of the political process: low-income households, renters, immigrant families, young people. At Nonprofit VOTE, we join forces with community-based organizations to provide nonpartisan, trusted information that helps people register, update their voter registration on file, and get to the polls. We do not guide anyone’s vote. We simply make sure they have the tools and resources to use their voice at the ballot box.
Absent organized outreach, millions risk missing upcoming local elections and next year’s midterms.
As we pivot to meet the challenges of the moment, we cannot lose sight of the importance of continued, year-over-year voter engagement. That would be a grave miscalculation. Democracy is not a moment. It is a process that must be nurtured. Neglect it even briefly, and disengagement grows; over time, silence becomes a civic barrier.
We already see the cost of inaction. In local elections, turnout often remains below 20 percent. That means decisions about schools, housing, public safety are made by a small, unrepresentative slice of our communities. Those who stay out of the room, quite simply, lose their voice.
Let’s take this opportunity on National Voter Registration Day, September 16, to recommit to the ongoing work of building a healthy democracy. The civic holiday is a nationwide call to action to reach the millions of voters who must register or update their registration before the next election cycle.
I have seen the difference that belief paired with action can make. Whether in a neighborhood church basement or at someone’s front door, registering to vote and showing up delivers real change. The lesson is clear: every election matters, every voter matters — and every year must be treated as a voting year.
Our democracy may be under pressure, but now is precisely not the time to pull back. The only answer is to step up.
Brian Miller is the Executive Director of Nonprofit VOTE, the nation’s leading source of nonpartisan resources to help nonprofits integrate voter engagement into their work.