Category: Democrats

Hickenlooper Completes Disability Candidate Questionnaire for Colorado Senate Race

Hickenlooper Completes Disability Candidate Questionnaire for Colorado Senate Race

Published by Laka Negassa on September 9, 2020

Key actions and positions posted on the intersection of disability and education, jobs, immigration, climate crisis, criminal justice and more

Denver, CO, Sept. 9 – Democratic Senate candidate and former Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper has responded to a detailed candidate questionnaire on disability issues. The questionnaire is from RespectAbility, a nonpartisan nonprofit disability organization that does not endorse candidates. The questionnaire is purely for educational purposes. RespectAbility has reached out to key Senate and gubernatorial campaigns on both sides of the aisle and will be posting all responses on The RespectAbility Report. The full text of RespectAbility’s questions and Hickenlooper’s responses follows:

1. Learning during the COVID-19 pandemic has led to more issues and concerns for all students and their families, but this is especially true for students with disabilities. Additionally, the gap in graduation and drop-out rates between students with and without disabilities continues to undermine their futures. For example, in the class of 2018, only 66 percent of Black students with disabilities, 71 percent of Hispanic students with disabilities, 77 percent of white students with disabilities, and 79 percent of AsianAmerican students with disabilities completed high school. Furthermore, just seven percent of students born with a disability graduate from college. What is your plan for ensuring that all students with disabilities receive a quality and appropriate education to acquire the critical and marketable skills necessary to compete in a job-driven economy?

Hickenlooper will work to close the achievement gap supporting the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), expanding literacy opportunities, promoting STEM learning, funding Head Start and full-day kindergarten, and so much more. As senator, Hickenlooper will work to ensure every student can benefit from the foundation for future success that education provides.

Cunningham Completes Disability Candidate Questionnaire for North Carolina Senate Race

Published by Philip Pauli on September 9, 2020

Key actions and positions posted on the intersection of disability and education, jobs, immigration, climate crisis, criminal justice and more

North Carolina Democratic Senate candidate Cal Cunningham

Raleigh, NC, Sept. 9 – Democratic Senate candidate Cal Cunningham has responded to a detailed candidate questionnaire on disability issues. The questionnaire is from RespectAbility, a nonpartisan nonprofit disability organization that does not endorse candidates. The questionnaire is purely for educational purposes. RespectAbility has reached out to key Senate and Governor campaigns on both sides of the aisle and will be posting all responses on The RespectAbility Report. The full text of RespectAbility’s questions and Cunningham’s responses follows:

1. Learning during the COVID-19 pandemic has led to more issues and concerns for all students and their families, but this is especially true for students with disabilities. Additionally, the gap in graduation and drop-out rates between students with and without disabilities continues to undermine their futures. For example, in the class of 2018, only 66 percent of Black students with disabilities, 71 percent of Hispanic students with disabilities, 77 percent of white students with disabilities, and 79 percent of Asian-American students with disabilities completed high school. Furthermore, just seven percent of students born with a disability graduate from college. What is your plan for ensuring that all students with disabilities receive a quality and appropriate education to acquire the critical and marketable skills necessary to compete in a job-driven economy?

The quality of our children’s education shouldn’t depend on where they grow up, their race, their wealth, or a disability, and I believe that public education—and the investments we make in our children through schools—should be an engine of opportunity for all North Carolinians. We must invest in opportunity through our schools by fully funding Title I and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, to provide schools the resources they need to succeed. I also support investment in specialized instructional support personnel, including counselors, psychologists, and other professionals, who address children’s unique academic and developmental needs and help ensure every child can thrive in school.

Zuckerman Completes Disability Candidate Questionnaire for Vermont Gubernatorial Race

David Zuckerman standing in front of a blurred background of trees and bushes

Zuckerman Completes Disability Candidate Questionnaire for Vermont Gubernatorial Race

Published by Philip Pauli on September 8, 2020

Key actions and positions posted on the intersection of disability and education, jobs, immigration, climate crisis, criminal justice and more

Vermont Lt. Gov. David Zuckerman

Montpiler, VT, Sept. 8 – David Zuckerman, Democratic Lieutenant Governor and candidate for Governor this fall, has responded to a detailed candidate questionnaire on disability issues. The questionnaire is from RespectAbility, a nonpartisan nonprofit disability organization that does not endorse candidates. The questionnaire is purely for educational purposes. RespectAbility has reached out to key Senate and gubernatorial campaigns on both sides of the aisle and will be posting all responses on The RespectAbility Report. The full text of RespectAbility’s questions and Zuckerman’s responses follows:

1. Learning during the COVID-19 pandemic has led to more issues and concerns for all students and their families, but this is especially true for students with disabilities. Additionally, the gap in graduation and drop-out rates between students with and without disabilities continues to undermine their futures. For example, in the class of 2018, only 66 percent of Black students with disabilities, 71 percent of Hispanic students with disabilities, 77 percent of white students with disabilities, and 79 percent of Asian-American students with disabilities completed high school. Furthermore, just seven percent of students born with a disability graduate from college. What is your plan for ensuring that all students with disabilities receive a quality and appropriate education to acquire the critical and marketable skills necessary to compete in a job-driven economy?

Education is a fundamental keystone to economic opportunity for all Vermonters. Schools are the heart of our communities. To give our children their best futures, we must focus on education from pre-k through higher education. We need educational opportunities for all Vermonters seeking more education, including trade schools, internships, and mentoring, that meet them where they are and help them realize their full potential as members of our communities.

The coronavirus pandemic has exposed many of the underlying inadequacies in our education system that many of us have known about, many have experienced, and so many Vermonters, stakeholders and organizations have tried to rectify for years.

We must also meet students where they are and adjust our system to meet our current reality. We must expand broadband to ensure that the students who can and will be studying from home can do so. We must also support our teachers, support staff and schools as they provide education for students who are not able to study and learn from home.

We must expand our understanding of societal issues that inhibit learning and overextend teachers. By closely connecting the Department of Health and the Agency of Human Services with the Agency of Education and working with frontline state, local and designated agency employees, we can find ways to save money by reducing redundancy, provide a stronger continuum of care and improve outcomes for some of our most vulnerable Vermonters.

Bullock Completes Disability Candidate Questionnaire for Montana Senate Race

Steve Bullock seated at his desk in his ofice with wall of books in background wearing a black suit with white shirt and red tie

Bullock Completes Disability Candidate Questionnaire for Montana Senate Race

Published by Philip Pauli on September 8, 2020

Key actions and positions posted on the intersection of disability and education, jobs, immigration, climate crisis, criminal justice and more

Montana Gov. Steve Bullock

Helena, Montana, Sept. 8 – Democratic Senate candidate and current Montana Gov. Steve Bullock has responded to a detailed candidate questionnaire on disability issues. The questionnaire is from RespectAbility, a nonpartisan nonprofit disability organization that does not endorse candidates. The questionnaire is purely for educational purposes. RespectAbility has reached out to key Senate and gubernatorial campaigns on both sides of the aisle and will be posting all responses on The RespectAbility Report. The full text of RespectAbility’s questions and Bullock’s responses follows:

1. Learning during the COVID-19 pandemic has led to more issues and concerns for all students and their families, but this is especially true for students with disabilities. Additionally, the gap in graduation and drop-out rates between students with and without disabilities continues to undermine their futures. For example, in the class of 2018, only 66 percent of Black students with disabilities, 71 percent of Hispanic students with disabilities, 77 percent of white students with disabilities, and 79 percent of Asian American students with disabilities completed high school. Furthermore, just seven percent of students born with a disability graduate from college. What is your plan for ensuring that all students with disabilities receive a quality and appropriate education to acquire the critical and marketable skills necessary to compete in a job-driven economy?

Access to a high-quality public education is a right, and is fundamental to ensuring economic mobility. For too long, the federal government has failed to live up to its commitments under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, and our students and schools suffer for it. We must start by fully funding IDEA, and build on that progress by securing significant expansions of programs like TRIO that help students with disabilities enroll in higher education and achieve postsecondary degrees. We must also support transitions from education to workforce by investing vocational rehabilitation services, so that everyone has the resources they need to succeed.

Dramatic Change in Disability Visibility in Politics as Disability on Display at the DNC

Photos of Tammy Duckworth, Gabby Giffords and Ady Barkin giving speeches at the DNC. Text: Disability at the Democratic National Convention

Dramatic Change in Disability Visibility in Politics as Disability on Display at the DNC

Published by Lily Coltoff on August 23, 2020

Washington, D.C., August 23 – The 2020 Democratic National Convention took place over the course of this week, and several speakers with disabilities were featured over the first-of-its-kind virtual event. By doing so, the event helped to normalize disability, showing individuals with a variety of disabilities speaking about topics from gun violence to healthcare – issues of importance to all people in America. This is a massive change in politics as people with disabilities are starting to be seen and heard.

Indeed, after the 2012 DNC and RNC political conventions, The New York Times created a tool where people could put in a word to see how many times that word appeared from the convention stages during these major events. People with disabilities had been missing from both the stage and the conversation as the tool showed that the word was not even mentioned once per 25,000 words from the Republican convention and was mentioned .03 times per 25,000 times at the 2012 Democratic convention.

The 2020 DNC convention, in contrast, featured both conversations about disability as well as speakers with disabilities.

Biden Campaign Surrogate Reaches Out to People with Disabilities

Published by Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi on August 21, 2020

Washington, D.C., August 21 – On behalf of the Biden Campaign, former Olympic figure skater and Special Olympics Board Member Michelle Kwan reached out to the 1-in-5 people who live with a physical, sensory, cognitive, mental health or other disability on the occasion of the 30th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

“It is more important than ever that we fulfill the promise of the ADA and build a more equal and inclusive society,” Kwan said at a national #ADA30 summit sponsored by RespectAbility, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization that fights stigmas and advances opportunities for people with disabilities. “That’s why [Biden] has introduced a plan for the Full Participation and Equality for People with Disabilities.” More than 10,000 people watched RespectAbility’s online summit.

Sen. Chris Van Hollen Reaches Out to People with Disabilities

Published by Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi on August 20, 2020

Washington, D.C., August 20 – Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen reached out to the 1-in-5 people who live with a physical, sensory, cognitive, mental health or other disability on the occasion of the 30th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

“if you look over the last 30 years, we have made significant progress in the areas of education, in expanding services to people with disabilities, and in expanding opportunities,” Sen. Van Hollen said at a national #ADA30 summit sponsored by RespectAbility, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization that fights stigmas and advances opportunities for people with disabilities. “But as we take stock of the progress we’ve made, we also recognize that we’ve got a long journey still ahead to meet the promise of full equality and full inclusion.” More than 10,000 people watched RespectAbility’s online summit.

Trump and Biden Campaigns to Speak at Disability Summit

Stills from Michelle Kwan and Lara Trump videos sent to RespectAbility with their names as captions

Trump and Biden Campaigns to Speak at Disability Summit

Published by Philip Pauli on July 31, 2020

Washington, D.C., July 31 – With 94 days until the Presidential election, surrogates from the Trump and the Biden campaigns will address a nationwide audience of more than 2,000 disability advocates, subject matter experts and community leaders gathered to mark the thirtieth anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Since Monday, July 27, the national disability nonprofit RespectAbility has hosted a series of virtual #ADA30 events focused on some of the most critical issues impacting people with disabilities in our nation today.

RespectAbility Releases 2020 Disability Voter Questionnaire for Senate and Governor Races

Map of the United States in front of a red and blue gradient background. Text: Disability voter Questionnaire for Senate and Governor Races

RespectAbility Releases 2020 Disability Voter Questionnaire for Senate and Governor Races

Published by Philip Pauli on July 24, 2020

Washington, D.C., July 24 – RespectAbility, a nonpartisan national nonprofit organization fighting stigmas and advancing opportunities so people with disabilities can fully participate in all aspects of community, is now sending its nonpartisan voter questionnaire to candidates in competitive Senate and Governors races across the country.

The outreach is being done in conjunction with RespectAbility’s online publication, TheRespectAbilityReport.org, an online publication around the intersection of disability and electoral politics. The answers to the questionnaire will be turned into nonpartisan voter guides in key battleground states across the country. This questionnaire builds on candidate outreach work done earlier this year during the Democratic Presidential Primary as well as past work in 2018 and 2016.

Biden and Trump campaigns release diversity data – but disability isn’t included

Official portraits of President Trump and Vice President Biden. Text: Trump vs. Biden Diversity Data

Biden and Trump campaigns release diversity data – but disability isn’t included

Published by Lily Coltoff on July 12, 2020

Washington, D.C., July 12 – After increased calls to disclose campaign staff diversity data, both the Biden and Trump campaigns released the diversity statistics of their teams, showing that less than half of their full-time and senior staffs are comprised of minorities. Noticeably absent from the data that has been…

Disabled Veteran Being Vetted for VP Nomination

Tammy Duckworth with a group of other veterans smiling in front of an American Flag

Disabled Veteran Being Vetted for VP Nomination

Published by James Trout on July 11, 2020

Washington, D.C., July 11 – Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) has been receiving much attention in recent weeks in the press as a potential running mate for presumptive Democratic Presidential nominee Joe Biden. Duckworth being on the ticket would be notable for several reasons. If Biden were to choose her as Vice President and win the 2020 Presidential election, Duckworth would be the first woman to serve as Vice President, the first Asian American to be elected as either Vice President or President, and the first person with a visible disability since Franklin Delano Roosevelt to be elected either as President or Vice President. Like many of the 57 million Americans with disabilities, Duckworth was not born with a disability but acquired one later in life.

Joe Biden’s Message to Voters with Disabilities: “Dignity and Opportunity”

Published by Philip Pauli on June 29, 2020

Washington, D.C., June 29 – Former Vice President and Democratic Presidential Nominee Joe Biden had a clear message for the disability community this past week: “Everyone is entitled to a life of dignity and opportunity.” In a video message played at POWER: the Disability Vote, a national, nonpartisan Disability & Election Virtual Summit hosted by the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), Biden spoke about his legislative record in the Senate and his vision for advancing disability rights if elected President.

Speaking of his legislative efforts as a Senator from Delaware, Biden talked about working on the passage of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 in his “first year in the Senate.” This law, which specifically prohibited “discrimination on the basis of disability in programs conducted by federal agencies,” created the legal environment that directly lead to the mobilization of the disability rights movement. Biden then talked about the passage of the Fair Housing Amendments Act (FHAA) of 1988. This law explicated added people with disabilities to the categories of people protected from discrimination “in housing sales, rentals or financing.” Lastly, he spoke with great pride about being counted among the cosponsors of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990.

Amid the Pandemic, Biden Campaign Unveils Disability Plan “For Full Participation and Equality”

Joe Biden on Meet The Press sitting in his home

Amid the Pandemic, Biden Campaign Unveils Disability Plan “For Full Participation and Equality”

Published by Philip Pauli on May 28, 2020

Washington, D.C., May 28 – After months of frustration, anticipation and advocacy by the disability community, presumptive Democratic presidential nominee and former Vice President Joe Biden unveiled his campaign’s disability platform. The plan, intended to positively impact the lives of the one-in-five Americans living with a disability, covers a range of issues as diverse and broad as the wider challenges facing the nation. Critically, the plan commits Biden and his campaign to ensure that “people with disabilities have a voice in their government” and are included throughout the “policy development and implementation” process.

The plan specifically delineates how a Biden presidency would “enforce civil rights,” ensure “affordable health care,” expand “competitive, integrated employment,” “strengthen economic security,” improve “educational programs,” and address “affordable housing, transportation, and assistive technologies” needs in the community as well as advancing “global disability rights.”

Bernie Sanders Drops Out of Presidential Primary

Bernie Sanders speaking behind a podium at a rally

Bernie Sanders Drops Out of Presidential Primary

Published by Eric Ascher on April 8, 2020

Washington, D.C., April 8 – Earlier today, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders announced that he is dropping out of the 2020 Democratic Primary, leaving former Vice President Joe Biden as the presumptive Democratic nominee for President.

While neither the Biden campaign nor the Trump campaign have yet released detailed policy plans on disability issues, ahead of the Iowa Caucus Sen. Sanders rolled out a comprehensive “Fighting for Disability Rights Plan.” In the plan, Sen. Sanders promised to “incorporate disability issues into every other area of public policy” and “promote access, autonomy, inclusion and self-determination for all.” The RespectAbility Report covered the plan back in February.

Sen. Sanders had also responded to RespectAbility’s detailed candidate questionnaire on disability issues. The questionnaire was purely for educational purposes. RespectAbility reached out to all of the major presidential campaigns on both sides of the aisle. All responses to the candidate questionnaire will be posted in full on The RespectAbility Report as they come in and will be used to produce and update nonpartisan voter guides in all 50 states. It is the hope of RespectAbility that the remaining candidates will send their responses in soon.

Stimulus Package Becomes Law – Here’s What It Means for People with Disabilities

The U.S. Capitol building and dome from far away. Text: COVID-19 Stimulus Package Becomes Law

Stimulus Package Becomes Law – Here’s What It Means for People with Disabilities

Published by Philip Pauli on March 27, 2020

Washington, D.C., March 27 – President Trump signed into law today the $2 trillion-dollar emergency stimulus aimed at propping up the economy during the current crisis. This law is unprecedented in its scope and is meant to help our nation respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. Even now, government agencies are going to work to implement the new law.

Millions of Americans living with disabilities are wondering what this new law means for them and whether they will see any benefit. The short answer is yes, but how far the law will go to help people with disabilities who are uniquely at-risk to the impact of the virus remains an open question.

New Battleground Poll Data Shows Disability Community is Large and Electorally Contested

Text: New Poll Data. Three women holding signs that say Earn My Vote!

New Battleground Poll Data Shows Disability Community is Large and Electorally Contested

Published by Eric Ascher on March 19, 2020

Logos for Democracy Corps, Greenberg Research and RespectAbility — Download the Memo

Washington, D.C., March 19 – New polling data of the battleground states shows that the disability community is large and electorally contested, but the issues they care about most are not being sufficiently addressed.

The phone poll of 1,000 registered voters across 16 presidential and Senate battleground states was conducted by Stan Greenberg, Ph.D., and the polling firm Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research (GQRR), on behalf of the disability inclusion organization RespectAbility. The data was released on a webinar earlier today. The memo, cross-tab data, and PowerPoint are available to download now. The webinar recording will be available to watch with captions early next week.

Voter Guide for 717,104 South Carolinians with Disabilities

South Carolina state flag with a tree and the moon

Voter Guide for 717,104 South Carolinians with Disabilities

Published by Chris-Mike Agbelie on February 24, 2020

South Carolina Ranks 43rd in the Country on Jobs for People with Disabilities

Columbia, South Carolina, Feb. 24 – In the run up to the 2020 South Carolina Democratic primary, the nonpartisan disability inclusion organization RespectAbility has released its South Carolina State Voter Guide.

According to the recently released 2019 Annual Disability Statistics Compendium, 717,104 people with disabilities live in South Carolina, comprising 14.4 percent of the total population. Research conducted in the 2018 election shows that 74 percent of likely voters either have a disability themselves or have a family member or a close friend with disabilities. The upcoming elections and their results will have an impact on people with disabilities, so it is important to become familiar with the candidates’ positions on certain issues.

Voter Guide for 373,391 Nevadans with Disabilities

Voter Guide for 373,391 Nevadans with Disabilities

Published by Philip Pauli on February 19, 2020

Nevada Ranks 9th in the Country on Jobs for People with Disabilities

Reno, NV, Feb. 19 – In the run up to the 2020 Nevada Democratic caucus, the nonpartisan disability organization RespectAbility has released its Nevada State Voter Guide.

According to the recently released 2019 Annual Disability Statistics Compendium, the total number of Nevadans with disabilities is 373,391 and they make up 12.5 percent of the total population. Research conducted in the 2018 election shows that 74 percent of likely voters either have a disability themselves or have a family member or a close friend with disabilities. The upcoming elections and their results will have an impact on people with disabilities, so it is important to become familiar with the candidates’ positions on certain issues.

Voter Guide for 171,000 New Hampshirites with Disabilities

Voter Guide for 171,000 New Hampshirites with Disabilities

Published by Lauren Gilbert on February 10, 2020

Guide Highlights Presidential Candidates’ Responses to 2020 Disability Candidate Questionnaire

Manchester, New Hampshire, Feb. 10 – As New Hampshire voters get ready to go to the polls in their state’s primary election, the nonpartisan disability rights nonprofit RespectAbility has released its New Hampshire State Voter Guide. According to the 2018 Annual Disability Statistics Compendium, there are more than 171,000 people with disabilities in New Hampshire. There is no early voting in New Hampshire’s presidential primaries. However, absentee ballots can be requested until the day before the election (February 10, 2020) and must be received by the day of the election (February 11, 2020) at 5:00 PM. This is a useful option for people with disabilities whose disability keeps them from voting in person. Voters with disabilities also can have an election judge or a person of their choice assist them with voting in person, as long as that person is not the individual’s employer, union representative, or a candidate running for office.

Research conducted in the 2018 election shows that 74 percent of likely voters either have a disability themselves or have a family member or a close friend with disabilities. The upcoming elections and their results will have an impact on people with disabilities, so it is important to become familiar with the candidates’ positions on certain issues.

Presidential Candidates, Disability Benefits & Jobs

a diverse group of RespectAbility Fellows looking at a document on a table

Presidential Candidates, Disability Benefits & Jobs

Published by Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi on February 2, 2020

Washington, D.C., Feb. 2 – As a nonpartisan national nonprofit organization fighting stigmas and advancing opportunities so people with disabilities can participate fully in all aspects of community, RespectAbility has invited all candidates in the presidential race on both sides of the aisle to submit their answers to a 2020 Disability Voter Candidate Questionnaire.

Question 11 in the Questionnaire was: “The federal law and benefits system punish people who want to work or whose families want to help them. For example, currently people with disabilities who are on SSI are prohibited of having more than $2,000 liquid assets at any one time. Furthermore, current law limits parents and grandparents to helping their children financially who acquired their disability prior to age 26 but not if they acquire a disability after age 26. What will you do to ensure that people have more options than being forced to choose between access to supports, benefits and service or the opportunity to pursue work, careers and an income?”

Below, read the answers from the five candidates who responded: