We all want free and fair elections in Maryland.

Election Protection makes sure that every American can make their voices heard even when anti-voter rules try to get in the way.  Every election year, Common Cause Maryland mobilizes hundreds of Election Protection volunteers to help our fellow voters navigate the voting process and cast their votes without obstruction, confusion, or intimidation.

The right to vote and have our voices heard is fundamental to our democracy.

At a time when far too many eligible voters are discouraged from voting or wrongly turned away from the polls, we need to rededicate ourselves to increasing participation among eligible voters.

But over the past several years, we have seen a disturbing increase in the number and scope of attempts to suppress the votes of tens of thousands of American citizens – sometimes by illegal, intimidating practices.

You can visit the State Board of Elections website to verify your voter registration, find out if you are eligible to vote, register to vote, get election reminders, and more.

What we do…

We will place hundreds of volunteers on the ground, and recruit a team of legal experts to staff the 866-OUR-VOTE hotline. Common Cause Maryland is a crucial line of defense for voters against suppression tactics, confusing laws, outdated infrastructure, and other impediments to making themselves heard. Above all, we inform voters of their rights, help elections officials handle problems in real time, and notify legal teams when the courts’ interference is needed.

We place trained poll monitors at polling places, especially in jurisdictions with a history of voting problems, where hotly-contested races exacerbate the chance of long lines, confusion, and other complications. Poll monitors will provide information, troubleshoot problems, and report bad practices to our teams to resolve them with election officials.

It’s this effort that facilitates our year-round work to advance strong voting reform: we note patterns or practices during the election, bring problems to the attention of elections officials and administrators, and work with them to arrive at commonsense solutions together. With this “all hands on deck” approach, we advance improved election systems.

See more information about our hotlines and help voting.

Protecting Voting Rights in Maryland

We need volunteers like you who will be voters’ first line of defense against suppression tactics, confusing laws, outdated infrastructure, and other impediments to making themselves heard.