FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 29, 2026
CONTACT
Esmie Tseng, [email protected]
KANSAS – The ACLU of Kansas is announcing a Week for Democracy to count down to the July 4th holiday. The organization will take proactive or defensive action throughout this week for voters’ rights and democracy in the state, starting with the launch of this year’s Election Protection program.
“Birthdays and anniversaries are times for reflection and growth, and we continue to grow our capacity and resolve to protect democracy amidst the coordinated attacks on the right to vote in 2026,” said Micah Kubic, Executive Director of the ACLU of Kansas. “We are proud to be part of the ACLU’s nationwide efforts to protect the power to vote, the resilience of our democratic institutions, and the simple fact that in a democracy, people choose their politicians, not the other way around. Here in Kansas, we mark the beginning of our election safeguarding work in the week before America’s 250th birthday by first launching our Election Protection program. And we’re just getting started.”
The 866-OUR-VOTE Election Protection nonpartisan, voter assistance hotline, is available to voters now and throughout the upcoming season of both the primary and general 2026 elections. Trainings for hundreds of Election Protection volunteers for poll monitoring in Kansas will begin this week and continue throughout July. The program’s volunteer poll observers will be available to provide in-person assistance if any problems arise at a particular polling location and will limit their activity to collecting and documenting information. These volunteer poll observers will be assigned to polling locations throughout various Kansas counties for collecting information and will be trained to observe all laws related to presence near voting places on Election Day.
Last Friday, the ACLU of Kansas sent a letter preemptively to election officials in all 105 Kansas counties informing them of the program during the upcoming 2026 Primary and General elections and inviting coordination. Election Protection supplements the resources already provided by poll workers and election offices, the latter of which often do not have capacity to directly assist voters with individual questions.
In past election cycles, Election Protection has been key in resolving on-site issues for voters. In 2022, voters were incorrectly turned away at the Maize Recreation Center polling location prior to the closing of polls on Election Day and were told to go to a different location to vote. Through the hotline, the ACLU of Kansas was able to inform and work directly with the Sedgwick County Election Office to ensure voters who arrived at other polling locations would be allowed to vote provisionally. The issue was resolved promptly without litigation.
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About the ACLU of Kansas: The ACLU of Kansas is the statewide affiliate of the national American Civil Liberties Union. The ACLU of Kansas is dedicated to preserving and advancing the civil rights and legal freedoms guaranteed by the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights. For more information, visit our website at www.aclukansas.org.
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