Diane and Don have really been on this. If you can help too, please do, Ray
Any help you could give me in sending this to Democrat groups would be
great....
VOTERS WITH DISABILITIES KEY TO DEMOCRATIC VICTORY
Dear Fellow Democrat:
How important would several million newly-registered Democrats be to
education supporters, unions, environmentalists, people in poverty, and
women's rights?
The U.S. Census Bureau estimates roughly one in five Americans is disabled*.
My son Roman Reed is paralyzed. As a stem cell research advocate, I served
on the board of directors for California's Proposition 71, and also helped
pass a research funding law named after my son (the Roman Reed Spinal Cord
Injury Research Act). Naturally, I am a strong Democrat.
With on-line (or assisted) registration, and absentee ballots, we in the
disability community could make a substantive contribution, especially in
states with close races.
Included below:
1. National statistics on voters with a disability;
2. State by state disability numbers;
3. State Phone list for voter registration information.
4. documentation: Americans with Disabilities Act, U.S. Census Bureau, U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services
The document sheets print out at one page each, for ease of sharing.
Please feel free to forward all or any part of this information.
Thank you,
Don C. Reed
www.stemcellbattles.com
*According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in the year 2000, America had 49.7
million disabled citizens, 19.3% of the population. Source: Disability
Status: Census 2000 Brief, issued March 2003. It should be noted, however,
that the Bush Administration tabulates the disabled far more conservatively,
reporting only 39.7 million, 14.9% of the population in 2005. Source: U.S.
Census Bureau, 2005 American Community Survey.
The larger figure is consistent with previous surveys done by the National
Organization for the Disabled/Harris Poll, the Survey of Income and Program
Participation (SIPP), the Americans with Disabilities Act, even a May 12,
2006 U.S. Census Bureau News report, which states: "More than 50 million
Americans report some level of disability".
DISABLITY REGISTRATION DRIVE KEY TO CONGRESSIONAL CONTROL
"A voter registration drive targeting the disability community would reap
major gains for the Democratic party in 2006."-Don C. Reed,
www.stemcellbattles.com
Potential voter population is huge: "There were 49.7 million people with
some type of lasting condition or disability living in the United States in
2000.or nearly one person in five."-U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder.
Disabled voters tend to vote Democratic. Bill Clinton won the disability
vote 52% to 29% in 1992, and four years later, increased that margin to
three-to-one, 69% to 23%. In the 2000 election, Vice President Al Gore was
preferred 56% to 38% over George Bush, and the disabled turned out in
substantial numbers to vote for him, an estimated 41%, providing a margin of
some three million voters.-sources: Council for Disability Rights, American
Association of People with Disabilities, National Organization on
Disability, Harris Interactive.
In 2004, however, disabled voters preferred Bush 49-41, on the basis of a
single issue, terror/Iraq. Non-disabled voters chose Bush 54-36% on that
issue. When polled on jobs and the economy, however, the disability
community gave 50% approval to Kerry and only 39% to Bush, compared to the
general public's 45/42% response. With widespread disapproval of the Bush
Iraq/terror stance, that single-issue barrier no longer exists. If helped
with registration, (especially at-home voting), the disability community
offers strong gains to Democrats.
Disability issues are natural Democratic issues. Not only is the Democratic
party the standard-bearer for stem cell research, but long-term concerns
like poverty, health insurance, and unemployment resonate among a community
suffering disproportionately from such ills. The 2000 census lists 56.6 %
of the disabled as having worked within the past year-implying more than 40%
unemployed, a level not seen nationally since the Great Depression.
Poverty? "The median income.was $12,800 for severe disabilities, $22,000 for
those with milder disabilities, and $25,000 for those with no disabilities."
Health Insurance? "19% of adults, ages 25-64 with severe disabilities, had
no health insurance. About 17% of those with milder disabilities had no
health insurance, while 16% of adults with no disabilities were without
health insurance."-cited in Council for Disability, Stephen Ohlemacher,
5/12/06
Geographically advantageous for Democrats, the disabled potential voter is
found in greatest numbers in the rural South, too long regarded as a GOP
stronghold. "Disability was more prevalent among families in the South .
Almost two out of every five people with a disability lived in the
South."-U.S. Census Bureau.
. --Don C. Reed
Chair, Californians for Cure
VOTERS WITH A DISABILITY, VOTING-AGE POPULATION
First, find your state: Alabama, for example. At the time of the census*,
Alabama had 871,415 voters with a disability. They made up 26.2% of the
voting age population. In other words, more than one-fourth of that state's
voters had a disability.
Alabama-871, 415-26.2% Alaska-73,953-17%
Arizona-824,286-21.9% Arkansas-529,563-26.6%
California-5,428,328-22.0% Colorado-579,648-18.1%
Connecticut-501,163-19.5% Delaware-119,068-20.2%
Florida-3,043,398-24.7% Georgia-1,328,500-22.1%
Hawaii-185,909-20.3% Idaho-181,197-19.6%
Illinois-1,819,404-19.8% Indiana-959,283-21.3%
Iowa-406,138-18.5% Kansas-391,900-19.8%
Kentucky-808,233-26.5% Louisiana-795,769-24.5%
Maine-217,605-22.3% Maryland-775,938-19.7%
Massachusetts-990,373-20.4% Michigan-1,550,672-21.1%
Minnesota-612,027-16.8% Mississippi-557,957--27.0%
Missouri-889,917-21.4% Montana-133,454-19.9%
Nebraska-228,202-18.1% Nevada-348,719-23.5%
New Hampshire-174,685-18.9% New Jersey-1,280,915-20.2%
New Mexico-308,258-23.5% New York-3,304,827-23.1%
North Carolina-1,420,210-23.3% North Dakota-88,842-18.5%
Ohio-1,742,241-20.6% Oklahoma-619,099-24.2%
Oregon-542, 484-21.1% Pennsylvania-1,947, 436-20.8%
Rhode Island-178,164-22.3% South Carolina-743,870-24.8%
South Dakota-104,338-18.9% Tennessee--1,059,947-24.7%
Texas-3,272,295-21.9% Utah-262,928-17.4%
Vermont-87,666-19.0% Virginia-1,052,978-19.7%
Washington-896,538-20.5% West Virginia-382,872-27.2%
Wisconsin-710,495-17.8% Wyoming-69,688-19.1%
*Note: these statistics are taken from the website of the American
Association of People with Disabilities, based on data from the 1997 U.S.
Census, reported in 2000. It is reasonable to assume the numbers would be
greater now, reflecting the overall rise in population. They are presented
here only as an example of the high proportion of disabled voters to the
general population.
PHONE NUMBERS FOR VOTER REGISTRATION AND ABSENTEE BALLOTS
How does a person register to vote? Where can you pick up absentee ballots,
and can one be sent to your house? Each state varies a little. (For example,
some states require a witness for an absentee ballot.) Good places to pick
up voting information are Post Offices and Departments of Motor Vehicles.
You can also look up Voter Information in the Government section of your
phone book.
The government official in charge of the voting process is your Secretary of
State. If you call that office, someone will help you with any voting
question. Do not feel bashful about calling them-- it is their job to help
you. (Or, if you prefer, go to their website: just Google Secretary of State
for whichever state you live in).
Below are phone numbers for your state's voter information.
Alabama 800-274-VOTE Alaska 907-465-4611
Arizona 877-843-8683 Arkansas 501-682-3526
California 800-345-VOTE Colorado 303-894-2200
Connecticut 800-540-3764 Delaware 302-739-4277
District of Columbia 202-727-2525 Florida 850-245-6200
Georgia 404-656-2871 Hawaii 808-453-8683
Idaho 208-334-2300 Illinois 217-782-4141
Indiana 317-232-3939 Iowa 888-767-8683
Kansas 785-796-4564 Kentucky 502-573-7100
Louisiana 225-342-4970 Maine 207-642-7736
Maryland 800-222-VOTE Massachusetts 800-462-VOTE
Michigan 517-373-2540 Minnesota 651-215-1440
Mississippi 800-829-6786 Missouri 573-751-2301
Montana 406-444-4732 Nebraska 402-471- 3229
Nevada 775-684-5705 New Hampshire
603-271-3242
New Jersey 609-292-3760 New Mexico 800-477-3632
New York 800-FOR-VOTE North Carolina 919-733-7173
North Dakota 800-352-0867, ext. 8-4146 Ohio 614-466-2585
Oklahoma 405-521-2391 Oregon 503-986-1518
Pennsylvania 717-787-5280 Rhode Island 401-222-2345
South Carolina 803-734-9060 South Dakota 605-773-3537
Tennessee 615-741-7956 Texas 800-252-VOTE
Utah 800-995-VOTE Vermont 800-439-8683
Virginia 804-786-6551 Washington
360-586-0400
Wisconsin 608-266-8005 Wyoming 307-777-7378
----------------------------------------------------------------------
To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask]
In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn
