Citizen journalists strengthening democracy by observing elections and sharing the results

Welcome to Video the Vote. Our goal is to protect the vote by being the eyes and ears where ballots are cast and counted on Election Day. We will document and report any irregularities that occur at polling places and boards of elections while they are happening, enabling the media and public to watch-dog the electoral process across our country.

Video the Vote was created by Ian Inaba of the Guerrilla News Network, John Ennis of Shoot First, and James Rucker of ColorOfChange.org. The three originally sought to provide a platform to help independent filmmakers coordinate their efforts on election day—documenting election problems and pushing those stories into the mainstream media. The idea morphed into a populist program where ordinary people could participate. They'd simply agree to be on-call to document any Election Day problems that arise in their area; the only requirements being having a digital video recorder, a cell phone, and broadband Internet access, and agreeing to respect governing election law.

Since starting, several organizations have partnered with us to make Video the Vote a success, namely Common Cause, the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, The League of Young Voters Education Fund, People for the American Way Foundation, and Rock the Vote.

In 2000 and 2004, we saw many problems at the polls: long lines, eligible voters turned away, voter intimidation, misallocation and malfunctioning of voting equipment. These stories were largely ignored as they took a back seat to the calling of races on Election Day. Then, days and weeks later, a more complete picture of voter disenfranchisement emerged—but it was too late. The elections were over and the media had moved on. Starting this election, citizen journalists—people like you and I—will document problems as they occur. We'll play them online, spread word through blogs and partner websites, doing our part to make sure the full story of our elections is told.

Like any grassroots effort, this campaign depends on the participation of as many people as possible. We hope you''ll sign up to Video the Vote and help ensure the full story gets told on Election Day and in the days afterward.

If you'd like to become a Video the Vote partner organization please contact us here and describe your vision for working together.