New Findings Reveal Stark Racial Disparities and Barriers to the Ballot
WASHINGTON, DC –Leading civil rights organizations today released a new analysis that reveals stark racial disparities and troubling patterns in voter turnout during Wisconsin’s April 7, 2020 primary, held during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The analysis, “COVID-19 Silence Voters of Color in Wisconsin,” was conducted by data experts from Demos and All Voting Is Local, a project of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights.
Reviewing voter data from last month’s Wisconsin primary, the groups found significant gaps in voter participation across the state – exposing existing flaws in our election system and the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on Black and brown voters who already face significant structural barriers at the ballot box.
“Our analysis shows how COVID-19 has exaggerated problems in our election system,” said Dr. Megan A. Gall, All Voting is Local’s national data director, “We know African Americans and Latinos have long faced barriers to the ballot.
The analysis further highlights that for wards with higher Black and Hispanic populations in Milwaukee, average voter turnout was 30 percent lower than the average voter turnout in white wards.
