Law students and faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, along
with community volunteers, will staff the North Carolina Election Protection
hotline, a toll-free, nonpartisan resource to answer voter questions during
the primary election on Tuesday, May 8.
Election Protection is a nationwide voter advocacy and education coalition of more
than 100 local, state and national partners, and is coordinated by the Lawyers’
Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.
Voters anywhere in the state can call 1-866-OUR-VOTE
(866-687-8683) or 1-888-VE-Y-VOTA (888-839-8682)
between 6:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m., the hours polls are open in North Carolina,
with questions about their rights and the voting process. Assistance will be
available in English and Spanish.
During the 2010 elections, the UNC School of Law Election Protection Hotline
fielded almost 300 calls. Nationally, the hotline received more than 20,000
calls with concerns regarding registration, absentee ballots, and voter manipulation
and intimidation.
There is specific cause for concern in North Carolina this
year due to the recent electoral redistricting, which in addition to revising
district boundaries has resulted in a very high number of split precincts.
The UNC Center for Civil Rights has coordinated the North Carolina Election
Protection hotline for several years. The law school’s Pro Bono Program has
recruited lawyers, law students and other volunteers who will be trained to answer
questions from North Carolina voters and to help them understand their voting
rights.
“This program is committed to ensuring that every qualified
voter gets a meaningful opportunity to exercise their basic civil right to cast
a ballot on Election Day,” says Elizabeth Haddix, senior attorney at the center
According to Haddix, Election Protection is the nation's most ambitious
nonpartisan program for preventing election-day disenfranchisement. The
coalition of state and national allies seeks to ensure that every eligible
voter casts a ballot that counts on Election Day.
For more information, contact Elizabeth Haddix, UNC Center
for Civil Rights Senior Attorney, at 919.843.9807 or emclaugh@email.unc.edu.
-May 3, 2012