Legacy Civil Rights Organizations Call Upon Voters to Stay Engaged and Hold Elected Officials Accountable After Historic Midterms Conclude

Read a PDF of our statement here.

CONTACT:
LDF: [email protected]
National Urban League: [email protected]
National Action Network: [email protected]
National Coalition on Black Civic Participation: [email protected]
Lawyers Committee: [email protected]
Leadership Conference: [email protected]
NAACP: [email protected]
NCNW: [email protected]

In the wake of the 2026 midterm elections, legacy civil rights organizations urge voters to remain vigilant after Election Day and to continue to engage year-round in the political process.

Throughout the 2026 midterm cycle, civil rights organizations organized, litigated, and marched to ensure that our elections were free and fair, and to empower and encourage voters to participate. Despite efforts to suppress and intimidate eligible voters, including Black voters and other voters of color, ballots were cast in record numbers through mail voting, early voting, and at the polls on Election Day. These attacks included efforts to revive poll taxes, mail voting restrictions, discriminatory redistricting efforts, egregious federal interference, and illegal voter roll purges. Now, voters must continue to take up the mantle of protecting our democracy by engaging with elected officials and holding them accountable to their promises.

"Civil society, and our organizations in particular, played a critical role in ensuring that the 2026 elections were largely free and fair, and as a result Black voters sent a resounding message that we cannot be silenced or counted out," said Janai Nelson, President and Director-Counsel of the Legal Defense Fund. "Now, it is imperative that every eligible voter stays engaged and vigilant. Democracy is a living, breathing, ongoing labor of love that we must continuously protect. It's not enough to just elect representatives to the halls of power. We must hold elected officials accountable to carry out the critical projects our communities deserve, including taking steps to ensure Black voters do not have to rely on substantial financial, advocacy, and mobilization resources to cast a ballot."

"I'm proud of the record-breaking voter turnout from our movement and our communities this election season but make no mistake that the work is just getting started," said Marc H. Morial, President and CEO of the National Urban League. "Our newly elected officials have a responsibility to restore funding to Medicare and Medicaid cut under the 'Big Ugly Bill'. They must pass legislation that reverses the anti-DEI executive orders that have cost thousands of us jobs. And they must push back against every anti-democratic action from this administration and keep us safe from rogue law enforcement. Now is the time for accountability. Call their offices and make your demands clear. Message them on social media to keep your priorities top of mind. And stand with us as we demand change."

"Black voters showed up in this election, with Black early voting surpassing 2022 levels in several states," said Rev. Al Sharpton, Founder & President of the National Action Network. "That turnout was built by organizers, clergy, community leaders, and volunteers who spent months registering voters, knocking on doors, making calls, and helping neighbors exercise their rights. Through NAN's Voter Brigades and my travels across the country, we joined that broader organizing effort. The credit belongs to the people. You can buy advertisements, but you cannot buy the people's voice.

"Now elected officials must listen to communities, hold public hearings, exercise oversight, and advance legislation protecting voting rights, enforcing civil rights, defending equal opportunity, and addressing the cost of housing, health care, and daily necessities. Black voters cannot be celebrated for their turnout and ignored when policy is made. We marched to defend the vote and organized to exercise it. We will measure leaders by whether they protect our rights and improve people's lives."

"Black voters met this moment, rejecting hate, corruption and escalating attacks on our rights and freedoms," said Melanie L. Campbell, President and CEO of the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation and Convener of the Black Women's Roundtable. "Black women's leadership, Black youth organizing and powerful Black voter turnout helped make these historic results possible. The lesson is clear: when we invest in Black-led organizations, especially in the South, that build trust and keep showing up between elections, we create lasting power. This is the beginning, not the end. We will protect every valid ballot and hold those elected accountable for delivering affordable health care, equal rights, safety and dignity for our communities."

"This is what democracy looks like. And this is what resilience in the face of voter suppression can yield. Despite the chaos and confusion of last-minute racial gerrymanders, threats to mail-in voting, voter purges, and other concerted efforts to stifle power at the polls, Black voters made their voices heard with tremendous force and made history in the process," said Damon T. Hewitt, President and Executive Director of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, which co-convenes the Election Protection Coalition and leads the nonpartisan hotline 866-OUR-VOTE. "We showed the world what we can do, and we must continue to do so. Election Day is over, but our work is not done. Vote tabulation and election certification continue and the obstacles to democracy and Black political power will not go away overnight. So, we will remain vigilant and we urge voters to do the same, even as we look forward to a new Congress and the renewed promise of passing critical voting rights legislation to protect their votes and their voices."

"The majority of voters across our country value their rights and freedoms - across race and across differences. Black voters, whose rights and freedoms have been directly attacked and threatened, were undeterred. We spoke up this midterm election, and we spoke loudly. We said no to scapegoating other communities historically pushed to the margins in a bid to pit us against each other. Even before the election, voters across demographics made clear that they know diversity is our strength. And as civil rights leaders, we know that only together can we build an America as good as its ideals. This isn't only about an election cycle. It is the beginning of a new future that we must build together," said Maya Wiley, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights.

"Once again, Black voters have proven that we are not bystanders in this country, we are its builders," said Derrick Johnson, President and CEO of the NAACP. "The Trump Administration tried every trick in the book to block voters from the polls, but we showed up and showed out, and we voted. This election's outcomes are not the finish line. They're a reminder that we the people have the power. And keeping that power requires us to vote, hold elected officials accountable, and fight for our freedom."

"Black women have once again demonstrated the power of organized communities to shape the future of this nation. But our work cannot end with casting a ballot. The National Council of Negro Women reaches more than three million members and supporters, and we intend to bring that collective strength to bear on the decisions being made in Washington, in statehouses, and in communities across America. We expect our elected officials to deliver on the issues that determine whether our families can thrive-affordable health care, economic opportunity, quality education, and the protection of our civil and voting rights. We organized to make our voices heard at the polls. Now we will organize to make certain they are heard where policy is made. Black women have helped shape the outcome of elections for generations. We intend to be just as consequential in shaping what happens next," said Rev. Dr. Shavon Arline-Bradley, President & CEO, National Council of Negro Women, Inc.

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