Disability Voting News: February 25, 2026

Sarah Blahovec

Sarah Blahovec

— 5 min read
The Accessible Voting Booth: Disability Voting News: February 25, 2026

Welcome to the February 25th edition of The Accessible Voting Booth. This week, we’re going to talk about the SAVE America Act’s passage in the House and its future in the Senate. Then, we’re turning to disability voting rights updates from around the world. 

House Passes the SAVE America Act (via The 19th News).

The biggest piece of elections news in the past two weeks is that on February 11th, the House of Representatives passed the SAVE America Act. As I reported in the February 11th issue of this newsletter, the GOP was fast-tracking this legislation, which requires that voters show documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote, such as an unexpired passport or birth certificate that reflects the voter’s current legal name–a challenge for married people or LGBTQIA+ people who have changed their name from what was originally on their birth certificate. 

This legislation now moves to the Senate, where it is currently stalled, as Senator Mitch McConnell has not scheduled a vote on the legislation. Additionally, it is unlikely that the bill will gain the 60 votes necessary to advance legislation past the Senate filibuster. However, Maine Senator and queen of performative handwringing Susan Collins has come out in support of the SAVE America Act. If the bill could advance past the Senate filibuster, Collins would serve as the 50th vote in favor of the bill, and Vice President J.D. Vance would serve as the tie breaker. So this is a great reminder to never take any vote for granted and call your legislators to tell them to oppose the SAVE America Act. 

A Roundup of Disability Voting News from Around the World

Over the past few weeks, I’ve seen quite a significant discussion of disability voting rights outside of the United States. Although we have different legal frameworks and electoral systems, disabled voters around the world face similar barriers. While the United States is often considered to have a more accessible voting system than many other countries due to laws like the Americans with Disabilities Act and requirements for accessible electronic voting equipment, compliance with the law is lacking, and these requirements are also under attack.

Disability advocates in the United States and internationally share common struggles in striving for equal political participation, and we can learn so much from each other as we continue to push for more accessible electoral systems. Here’s some examples of disabled voters in other countries experience when they try to vote, and what they are doing to advocate for full access: 

Barbados: Disabled voters ‘dismayed’ by barriers at polls (via Barbados Today). 

Members of the Barbados Council for the Disabled (BCD) said that a recent election showed no improvement for voting access for people with disabilities and called for greater reform. BCD’s operations manager, Roseanna Tudor, specifically called out continued barriers for people with vision and mobility disabilities, including a lack of accessible voting options for voters who are blind and have low vision. This lack of accessible voting equipment means that blind voters cannot cast their ballot privately and independently. Tudor also called for accessibility to be addressed proactively in the planning process instead of being left to be addressed last minute on Election Day. The BCD has submitted recommendations including:

“a formal post-election accessibility review involving disability stakeholders; clear accessibility guidelines and measurable standards for polling stations; early consultation with disability organisations ahead of future elections; and the establishment of a structured national mechanism to collect data on the experiences of people with disabilities.”

Additionally, early voting is currently only available to essential service workers, and Tudor has suggested that disabled voters be allowed to use early voting. The BCD will continue to advocate for full electoral participation of voters with disabilities and is waiting to meet with the Electoral and Boundaries Commission (EBC) to discuss the challenges that disabled voters face.

People with disabilities in Assam seek political representation ahead of assembly polls (via Guwahati Plus).

This month, the National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP) in Assam, India convened people with disabilities, organizations of people with disabilities, and others to discuss political exclusion of people with disabilities, with the aim to create a Charter of Demands for upcoming elections. Voters with disabilities in Assam experience inaccessible polling places and election information, exclusion from policymaking processes, and limited representation. As part of the "Mera Vote Mera Bharat" campaign to strengthen political inclusion of people with disabilities, meeting participants created a platform that addresses access to health insurance, inclusion in governance, inclusive education, accessible sports facilities, and promotion of accessibility and universal design. 

The Executive Director of NCPEDP, Arman Ali, shared: 

“Democracy is meaningful only when every citizen can participate equally. Persons with disabilities are not asking for charity. They are asserting their constitutional right to political participation. The Mera Vote Mera Bharat campaign is about ensuring that our voices shape policies, manifestos and governance priorities. We want political parties in Assam to recognize persons with disabilities are an important and active voter constituency.” 

Accessibility gaps exposed as millions of voters with disabilities cast ballots in Bangladesh (via Dhaka Tribune).

During its national election on Thursday, February 12, Bangladeshi voters with disabilities experienced access barriers at the polls. Bangladesh holds elections every five years, and most polling places are located in educational institutions. Despite the fact that schools are supposed to be inclusive environments, they lack accessible infrastructure, with inaccessible pathways and stair-only entrances. Shah Dedar shares one scene from Election Day at the Kathgor Government Primary School: 

“An older person with mobility impairments arrived, determined to exercise his constitutional right, only to be turned away due to an inaccessible staircase. With no ramp in sight, no volunteer to assist, and no alternative arrangement, the staircase became an insurmountable wall, effectively disenfranchising a citizen before he could even enter the booth.” 

Unfortunately, because of these persistent barriers, only 10% of the three million disabled voters in Bangladesh have been able to cast their ballot. Additionally, disability rights advocates have raised concerns about how the inaccessibility of this infrastructure impacts students with disabilities, and said that while polling places need to be accessible, there should be permanent accessibility changes to the educational institutions that serve as polling places. 

Most polling centers lack road access in Mugu, Nepal (via Rising Nepal Daily). 

Ahead of the March 5th House of Representatives election in Nepal, it has been reported that the majority of the 69 polling places in the Mugu district do not have road access. 67 of 69 of these polling places are located in school buildings.

Additionally, Rising Nepal Daily has reported that voters need to walk around four hours from the nearest road to reach voting centers. These roads often include “narrow access routes…unpaved rural roads and weather-related risks.” For voters with disabilities, participating in an election under these conditions is extremely difficult, if not impossible. 

NHRC urges Korea to expand its disability accommodations to secure voting rights (via ChosunBiz)

The National Human Rights Commission has sent recommendations to the Chairperson of the National Election Commission and Chairperson of the Korea Media and Communications Commission to improve voting for people with disabilities. After receiving a petition from a civic group who claimed they were not provided reasonable accommodations during 2022 elections, the NHRC has recommended the following improvements:

  • Not limiting the number of pages in braille election brochures;
  • Creating an implementation plan to provide easy-to-understand ballots and election brochures for people with intellectual disabilities;
  • Amending the Public Official Election Act to permit people with developmental disabilities to receive assistance with marking their ballot;
  • Ensuring that all polling locations are installed on the first floor of a building or in locations with elevators;
  • Expanding sign language interpretation broadcasts across public broadcasting and reviewing a plan to assign at least two Korean Sign Language interpreters when there are two or more speakers at interviews, debates, or policy debates organized by the Election Broadcasting Debate Commission. 

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