Why voting rights?

NCAAN Votes

The NC AIDS Action Network fights for the rights of people living with HIV/AIDS, their loved ones, and those at risk for acquiring HIV. As part of this mission, we work on making sure that North Carolina’s state policies advance those rights. And when it comes to influencing policy, our votes are our power.

Voting is the first and most basic way we participate in our government. If we want to keep building power for the communities most affected by HIV in North Carolina, we need to keep voting convenient.

Three quarters of our Action Team voters went to the polls in the last election. More than three-quarters of those voters cast their ballots early. Those votes made a difference. When we ask legislators to support programs that make a difference in the lives of people living with HIV and those at risk, it helps to have those leaders know that our members - and others most affected by HIV - vote.

 Attacks on Voting Rights

In the last month, North Carolina legislators have introduced bills that would require photo ID to cast a ballot, cut back early voting, end Sunday voting and same-day registration, and severely limit voting rights for students, people who have completed a felony sentence, and others.

These bills would hit especially hard for many of the groups of voters most affected by HIV, such as young, low-income, African-American, Latino, and transgender voters. For example, African-American voters are more likely to vote early, more likely to vote on Sunday, and more likely to not already have a government-issued photo ID. They are also 10 times more likely than white North Carolinians to be living with HIV.

Bottom line - if these bills pass, it will be harder for the people who are most affected by HIV in this state to vote in the next election. And that means we’ll have fewer voters who are fighting to protect funding for HIV medications, access to healthcare, anti-discrimination laws, and other issues that we care about.

If you’d like more information on these bills, Democracy North Carolina has good information on bills affecting voting rights in NC, who would be most affected if those bills become law, and the impacts of the voter ID bill. 

If you'd like to take action to keep voting accessible and convenient in North Carolina, you please send an email to our legislative leadership now.