Voting that shuts people out
If a polling place or a voting machine isn't accessible, voters with disabilities can be effectively shut out — unable to vote privately and independently, or unable to even get in the door. They're not formally denied; they're just blocked.
Explainer video coming soon
A 60-second, plain-language walkthrough of this gap.
What actually happened
A U.S. Government Accountability Office study found that 83% of polling places in 2016 had one or more potential barriers for voters with disabilities, and more than a third lacked a way for those voters to mark a ballot privately and independently — despite federal requirements under the ADA and the Help America Vote Act.
Where it stands today
Most jurisdictions do have some accessibility mandate (which is why the figure above is low), but the GAO findings show the barriers persist in practice where the mandate is weak or unenforced. The figure reflects what today's law requires.
Blocked, not denied
You don't have to turn anyone away to take their vote. Just make the polling place or the machine hard to use. A step at the entrance, an accessible voting station that isn't set up, no private way to mark a ballot — and a voter with a disability is effectively shut out. No one said "no"; the barrier said it for them.
Why it matters
A U.S. Government Accountability Office study found 83% of polling places in 2016 had one or more potential barriers for voters with disabilities, and more than a third offered no way to vote privately and independently — despite the ADA and the Help America Vote Act. The right to vote means little if you can't actually use it.
How TrustVoting closes it
The ballot-marking device is built for accessible, private, independent voting — audio ballots, large-text/high-contrast display, and assistive inputs — so a voter with a disability marks their own ballot, in secret, without needing anyone's help.
How TrustVoting closes it
TrustVoting's ballot-marking device is built for accessible, private, independent voting — audio ballots, large-text and high-contrast display, and assistive inputs (e.g. sip-and-puff) — so a voter with a disability casts their own ballot without help.