About Us
During the contentious 2020 presidential election season, we faced a once-in-a-lifetime global pandemic and leaders who sought to sow doubt in our democratic process. That’s why Issue One’s National Council on Election Integrity anchored the successful “Count Every Vote” campaign to protect the election, which had the highest voter turnout in more than a century and was declared the most secure in American history.
But our work is not over.
Since the election, efforts to undermine confidence in our elections have intensified as partisan actors spread disinformation and plot to take over election administration in states across the country.
We must remain steadfast in our commitment to defend and protect the voice of American voters and the hard-working full-time officials, seasonal workers, and volunteers that run our elections and make our democracy work.
The Count Every Vote campaign will continue in 2022, 2024, and beyond.
That’s why we have developed a set of strategies to blunt the effects of well-coordinated and well-funded efforts to undermine the foundational principle of our democracy — and ensure that every vote counts.
The campaign has three components:
- Uniting pro-democracy forces around the principles of safe, secure and transparent elections where every vote is counted
- Passing federal legislation to help blunt the effects of restrictive and partisan state laws and to ensure strong and resilient elections for 2022 and 2024 and beyond
- Intervening to block partisans from taking over election administration, especially in the swing states
All states and U.S. territories should have a range of options for safe and secure voting. Any and all efforts — foreign or domestic — to undermine the credibility of our election processes should be publicly rebuffed.
ABOUT THE NATIONAL COUNCIL ON ELECTION INTEGRITY:
The National Council on Election Integrity (NCEI) consists of nearly 40 government, political, and civic luminaries united around defending the legitimacy of our free and fair elections.
Members come from different parts of the United States and represent diverse political views, yet they share concern about the numerous and growing threats to our republic. NCEI is united around our common commitment to the American tradition of safe, secure, and transparent elections administered in a nonpartisan manner.
The National Council on Election Integrity is guided by the following principles:
- We believe that every eligible voter should have equal access to the ballot box — no matter your political ideology, gender, skin color or ZIP code.
- Americans must be able to trust that their votes will be counted fairly and accurately.
- The will of the people must be protected and respected — no political party should be allowed to overturn the result of a free and fair election.
- Elections should not be overseen by partisans who seek political gain.
- Election officials and frontline poll workers are the cornerstone of American elections who need to be supported and protected against threats simply for doing their job to ensure safe and credible elections.
- States and localities should receive regular and predictable funding from the federal government to ensure safe, secure, and credible elections.
- States should pre-process absentee ballots in advance of Election Day so they can be efficiently counted when polls close.
- The federal government should encourage states to adopt a series of best election administration practices — such as the pre-processing of absentee ballots — that will improve the security of elections and put voters first, incentivizing states with special funding to carry out their elections.
