April 19, 2023

Elections Administration: Best Practices of Voting Rights Act-Language Support

PANEL AT THE 2010 NACRC LEGISLATIVE CONFERENCEMarch 3, 2012

TERRY AO MINNIS, DIRECTOR OF CENSUS & VOTING PROGRAMSASIAN AMERICAN JUSTICE CENTER

Who We Are

Founded in 1991, AAJC is a national organization working to advance the civil and human rights of Asian Americans, and build and promote a fair and equitable society for all.

Along with three affiliates, we comprise the Asian American Center for Advancing Justice. As an affiliated organization we engage in policy advocacy, impact litigation, research, and we provide a range of direct services.

> Asian Pacific American Legal Center (Los Angeles)> Asian Law Caucus (San Francisco)> Asian American Institute (Chicago)

Overview of Section 203

Section 203 requires certain jurisdictions to provide language assistance to voters depending on population size

Section 203 covers Alaska Natives, American Indians, Asian Americans and Latinos

Census Bureau releases a new list of covered jurisdictions every five years

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Types of Language Assistance Available Under Section 203

Translated written materials>ballots, voter registration forms, polling

place signs, other voting materials

Oral assistance>bilingual poll workers, interpreters

Pre-election publicity>ethnic media, community outreach

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Section 203 Coverage Formula

For any particular jurisdiction, a languageminority group is covered if:

1. LEP voting-age citizens from the group either number at least 10,000 or make up 5% of the jurisdiction’s total voting-age citizens

AND 2. The illiteracy rate of the group is higher than the national illiteracy rate

SECTION 203 & ASIAN AMERICANS

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New Section 203 Determination

Census Bureau released new determination in October 2011

11 states now have jurisdictions covered for Asian American language groups, compared to 7 states in previous determination made in 2002

43 Asian American geographic populations are now covered, compared to 27 populations in 2002

Asian Indian and Bangladeshi are now covered, in addition to Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Korean and Vietnamese

> LA County is providing assistance in Khmer and Thai to satisfy their obligations for “Other Asian – Not Specified”

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States with covered jurisdictions under new 2011 Section 203 determinations for Asian languages

Alaska (2 boroughs, 1 language covered total) California (8 counties, 8 languages covered total) Hawaii (2 counties, 3 languages covered total) Illinois (1 county, 2 languages covered) Massachusetts* (1 city, 1 language covered) Michigan* (1 city, 1 language covered) Nevada* (1 county, 1 language covered) New Jersey* (1 county, 1 language covered) New York (3 counties, 3 languages covered total) Texas (1 county, 2 languages covered) Washington (1 county , 2 languages covered)

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Currently 9 Asian American language groups covered by Section 203

Covered language group # of jurisdictions covered for language group

Asian Indian* 3

Bangladeshi* 1

Chinese 16

Filipino 9+

Japanese 2

Korean 4

Khmer (Other Asian – not specified)* 1

Thai (Other Asian – not specified)* 1

Vietnamese 7

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+ One jurisdiction in Alaska dropped from Section 203 coverage between 2002 and 2011.

New Section 203 Determination and Asian American Voters

Over 4 million Asian American voting-age citizens are now covered by Section 203.

> This represents a 54% increase since the last determinations made in 2002

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State Asian American CVAP

Alaska 1,194California 2,400,212Hawaii 451,186Illinois 184,870Massachusetts 11,802Michigan 2,026Nevada 114,099New Jersey 61,842New York 498,627Texas 139,172Washington 165,080

The Need for Language Assistance by Asian American Voters

Asian Americans speak dozens of languages and dialects. About a third of Asian Americans are Limited English

Proficient (LEP) and experience some difficulty communicating in English.

> The Vietnamese, Bangladeshi, Cambodian, Hmong, Taiwanese, Chinese, Korean and Laotion American communities have the greatest percentage of LEP individuals.

3 out of 4 Asian Americans speak a language other than English at home.

21% of Asian American households are linguistically isolated, meaning that all household members 14 years old and over speak English less than “very well.”

Exit Polling Also Indicates Need for Language Assistance

APALC exit poll of Los Angeles County voters during November 2008 election showed

> 36% of Chinese American voters were LEP and 30% used assistance

> 57% of Korean American voters were LEP and 60% used assistance

> 48% of Vietnamese American voters were LEP and 50% used assistance

> 27% of Indian American voters were LEP (weren’t covered by Section 203 at that time)

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Success of Section 203

When properly implemented, both Asian American voter registration and voter participation has increased significantly in covered jurisdictions.

> For example, voter registration among Filipino Americans increased by 21% after DOJ enforced Section 203 requirements to provide Tagalog language assistance in San Diego County, CA.

– Similarly, voter registration among Vietnamese Americans increased by 37% after the county agreed to voluntarily provide assistance in Vietnamese.

> In Harris County, Texas, turnout among eligible Vietnamese American voters doubled after DOJ took action in 2004 to bring the county into compliance.

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Common Section 203 Issues Spotted During Poll Monitoring Efforts

Lack of translated ballots and other materials Refusal to display translated material Poor signage, no bilingual poll worker badges Lack of voter hotline information Hostility toward poll monitors & language

minority voters Lack of bilingual poll workers Unnecessary voter ID checks Other issues

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PROPER IMPLEMENTATION OF SECTION 203 FOR ASIAN AMERICAN VOTERS

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SECTION 203 IMPLEMENTATION & COMPLIANCE: DOJ Regulations

The DOJ regulations offer two basic standards for measuring compliance:

> Whether materials and assistance are provided in a way designed to allow voters to be effectively informed of and participate effectively in voting-connected activities

> Whether the covered jurisdiction takes all reasonable steps to achieve that goal

The opinion of community members and organizations is important in assessing compliance

Some Pre-Election Issues and Activities

Written Assistance> Accurate translations of materials

Oral Assistance> Targeting of poll sites for language assistance> Poll worker recruitment and training

Pre-Election Publicity> Adequate publicity through media and outreach

General Issues> Advisory committee> Preparation for Election Day troubleshooting

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WRITTEN MATERIALS: Comprehensive Review

Election officials should conduct a comprehensive review of election materials to identify materials that should be (or still need to be) translated, such as:

Ballots Sample ballot booklets Vote-by-mail or absentee materials Provisional ballot materials Voter registration forms Poll worker name badges Polling place signs Voter information guides Registration of voters’ website

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WRITTEN MATERIALS: Accurate Translations

Election officials should ensure accurate translation of election materials:

> Use a certified translation vendor

> Provide opportunities for CBOs to review drafts of translated materials

> Work with CBOs and ethnic media to establish a glossary of commonly used election terms

Election officials should ensure complete translation of ballot information by using translations, including phonetic translations (called transliterations), of candidate names

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POLL WORKER RECRUITMENT, TRAINING & TARGETING: Targeting Poll Sites

If targeting poll sites for language assistance, election officials should use sound methodology to identify poll sites where language assistance is needed:

> Consult with CBOs on methodology for poll site targeting

> Use variety of data to identify poll sites, including place of birth, name matching, census data, requests for language assistance, and information provided by community members

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POLL WORKER RECRUITMENT, TRAINING & TARGETING: Adequate Recruitment

Form partnerships with other agencies and departments within the jurisdiction to identify and recruit bilingual government employees

Explore partnerships with high schools and colleges to recruit bilingual students

Ask ethnic media outlets to run PSAs to let the public know about opportunities to serve as poll workers

Explore partnerships with CBOs to recruit bilingual poll workers through community outreach efforts

Establish reserve pool of bilingual poll workers to be sent to poll sites where bilingual poll workers are missing on Election Day

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POLL WORKER RECRUITMENT, TRAINING & TARGETING: Poll Worker Training

Election officials should ensure adequate training of poll workers on language assistance and cultural sensitivity:

Devote sufficient time and emphasis during trainings to the proper delivery of language assistance and cultural sensitivity

Provide CBOs with opportunities to review and comment on drafts of poll worker training curricula

Provide CBOs with opportunities to observe poll worker trainings

Allow CBOs to conduct presentations and workshops as part of poll worker trainings to help educate poll workers on the communities they will be serving

POLL WORKER RECRUITMENT, TRAINING & TARGETING: Problematic Poll Workers

Election officials should establish a mechanism for handling complaints about poll workers lodged by language minority voters, including addressing Election Day problems on-the-spot as well as post-Election Day counseling of poll workers

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PRE-ELECTION PUBLICITY & OUTREACH: Election Officials Should…

Use ethnic media to publicize the availability of language assistance:

> Ask ethnic media outlets to run PSAs

> Work with CBOs to identify earned media opportunities

> Add ethnic media outlets to press list

Conduct outreach to community members:> Form partnerships with CBOs to publicize the availability of

language assistance

> Send outreach staff to community events and gathering places

Conduct direct outreach to language minority voters:> Mail in-language postcards to voters within a covered language

minority group to let them know about the option to receive translated election materials prior to Election Day, together with a form to sign up to receive translated materials

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GENERAL PRACTICES THAT SHOULD BE ADOPTED

Establish an advisory committee consisting of CBO representatives working with and/or serving language minority voters

Hire election staff, such as a language minority coordinator, to coordinate the jurisdiction’s efforts to meet its Section 203 requirements

Set up an Election Day troubleshooter team to check poll sites for, and resolve, issues such as missing bilingual poll workers or translated materials

Add multilingual capacity to the jurisdiction’s voter hotline

Advancing Justice Resources

Help Asian Americans Protect their Voting Rights: A Guide to Ensure Language Assistance During Elections – Section 203 handbook

Suggested Implementation Checklist for Jurisdictions Covered by Section 203

Section 203 website – www.advancingequality.org/section-203

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Contact Information

Terry Ao Minnis

Director of Census & Voting Programs

Asian American Justice Center

202 296-2300 x127

tminnis@advancingequality.org

For more information, visit www.advancingequality.org