Protecting Your Voting Rights

NEA Booklet Encourages Americans to Vote

"Every American citizen over 18 years of age has a fundamental right to vote and to have that vote counted," says NEA president Reg Weaver.

The right to vote remains one of the most fundamental elements of democracy and Americans have both the right and the responsibility to vote for the issues they hold dear.

For the NEA, the main issue is providing great public schools for every child.

To maintain quality public schools, voter participation is critically important. Great public schools depend on public support and informed lawmakers elected by voters at the national, state, and local levels.

Voters have the primary responsibility to elect officials who will represent them well and then hold those officials accountable to make and enforce sound policies.  In local communities, voters have a great say in the funding and education policies for their schools.

Since the Voting Rights Act became law in 1965, voter participation has increased. But some provisions of the Voting Rights Act, which were fought for long and hard, may end in the summer of 2007 -- unless they are reauthorized. Here are some questions to test your knowledge of the provisions:

1. May you receive bilingual voting assistance when you vote?
   
   
2. May you seek federal examiners if you suspect racial discrimination in local electioneering?
   
   
3. May you seek federal government preclearance before a proposed change in voting qualifications or procedures take effect where you live?

You will find the answers to these questions and more when you read the NEA's booklet Protecting Your Voting Rights. At the back of the publication, you will find online resources --  with links to classroom materials for educators, voter registration tools for the public, and reports on voting rights and reform measures for policy makers. In a online companion piece to the booklet, you will find Voting Rights Resources with materials for educators -- lesson plans, activities, current events, and quizzes and materials to promote voter registration and voting.

Today, more than ever, American citizens should be honored to have the right to vote. They should keep themselves informed to exercise that right. And they should diligently use it. Make your voice count. Register and vote.

Read the NEA booklet Protecting Your Voting Rights ( 524KB).
See the Web resources Voting Rights Resources.