As we approach National Voter Registration Day, it’s important to understand the critical role that language services has in the voting process. The "Voting Rights Act" was passed in 1975. It protects voters' rights against any discrimination, including but not limited to, minority language barriers. When it was first enacted, Congress determined that translation of voter materials and ballots would include American Indians, Asian Americans, Alaskan Natives, and those of Spanish heritage. This includes translation of online articles related to voting registration along with translation of directions and instructions related to voting. 

The Act relies on Census Bureau data to determine whether translation of voting materials are required based on the following two criteria: 

1. More than 10,000 or over 5% of voting-age citizens in the state, county, or municipality must be “members of a single language minority group” with limited English proficiency. When the 5% criterion is met, ballots and election information must be made available in the second language state-wide: if 5.8% of a state’s population are Spanish speakers with limited English proficiency, all elections in the state must support Spanish, even in individual counties and cities that don’t meet the 5% threshold. The statewide coverage is only triggered by the 5% criteria; the 10,000-person threshold only mandates local second-language support.

2. The language minority must have depressed literacy rates. A “depressed literacy rate” means that a percentage of the language minority’s voting-age citizens with a fifth-grade education is lower than the national average¹.

While there has been some progress over the last decades and more than 300 locations in the United States have gotten on board with the requirements to translate voter materials, there are still several minority languages left out. In addition to Arabic and Haitian Creole being left out, there are growing needs for citizens who speak Bengali, Chinese, Hmong, Tagalog, and Vietnamese with limited English proficiency. Some local governments are getting involved in filling these gaps, such as Dearborn, Michigan. This year, ballots for Michiganders will be provided in both English and Arabic. Some believe that the Voting Rights Act should be enforced at the federal level. Regardless, there is still work to be done. 

By Rachel Kraft

Marketing Manager

¹https://usafacts.org/articles/how-do-non-english-speaking-americans-vote/