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For those worried about the state of U.S. democracy—a group that includes 84 percent of Americans, according to a Johns Hopkins study—UU the Vote has a powerful message: Get involved.
Hundreds of people did just that at UU the Vote’s 2026 campaign launch, “Ignite Solidarity, Reimagine Democracy,” an online event held Wednesday, March 25.
Over 400 attendees at the virtual rally enagaged with speeches from prominent activists, organizers, and UU leaders, focused on the work of increasing voter turnout, fighting fascism, and strategic organizing grounded in UU Shared Values.
“I don’t know about you, but I believe we’ve been playing too small,” said Nicole Pressley, the UUA’s Organizing Strategy Director, receiving a wave of heart emojis in the Zoom chat. “I believe that faith has something to say about these times … We have that spiritual anchor that says something different is possible. A new world is possible, and I think it’s going to be us to move it across the finish line.”
‘We are Building a Mass Movement for Justice and Democracy’
Speakers at the event offered words of inspiration, as well as details of how UU the Vote is planning to make an impact in the 2026 election landscape.
At the start of the launch, Pressley emphasized the importance of connecting with friends, family, congregations, and local communities to increase democratic participation.
“We need to focus on each other, building our community infrastructure so we can win this thing,” she said.
Presenters detailed key aspects of organizing strategy, including the many ways that individuals can make an impact at the grassroots level: knocking on doors, calling and texting voters, working as a poll observer, recruiting volunteers in their religious community, and more.
“We need all of us,” said featured speaker Samm Pheiffer, Voter Contact Training and Mobilization Consultant for the UUA. “So, let’s show up, let’s get organized, let’s reach people, and let’s build the kind of power that actually changes what’s possible.”
“No one is coming to save us,” said Caitlin Breedlove another featured speaker and a former Campaign Director of Side With Love. “We must be each other’s salvation.”
Speakers also addressed the challenges and dangers facing our democracy: gerrymandering, voter intimidation, and attacks on voting rights, as well as the SAVE act, which would stop millions of Americans from voting, according to the Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University School of Law.
The Brennan Center’s report found that the SAVE act, which would require citizens to show a document such as a passport or birth certificate to vote, would disproportionately disenfranchise younger voters and voters of color.
While not downplaying the strife and dysfunction in our democracy today, speakers at the event urged attendees to believe in the power of hope, connection, and community.
Outlining the ambitious goals of the campaign, Pressley said that success in the work to come “will take deep, radical, and unrelenting love that, throughout history, has made the impossible possible. We are building a mass movement for justice and democracy.”
How to Connect with UU the Vote 2026
Speakers at the virtual rally encouraged the audience to get involved in community activism and offered concrete ways to get started.
Here are ways to take part in the UU the Vote movement and help create change in 2026:
- Fill out the Volunteer & Stakeholder Interest Form for UU the Vote 2026, letting organizers know the kinds of work you’d like to learn more about.
- Request a copy of the UU the Vote 2026 Toolkit, which provides strategic guidance to individuals and congregations.
- Attend an upcoming UU the Vote online event. A phonebanking training event will be held on April 6, and April 15 will be the first edition of UUTV Office Hours, a bi-monthly opportunity to ask questions and discuss organizing strategy. A full calendar of upcoming UU the Vote Events can be found on their website.
- Donate to Side With Love to support their work for electoral justice through UU the Vote, as well as their work for climate justice, immigration justice, reproductive justice and more.
- Learn how your congregation could become a Good Trouble Congregation, by achieving specific goals in voter outreach, community safety and defense, volunteer engagement, and more.
- Watch the recording of the “Ignite Solidarity, Reimagine Democracy” event.
For ongoing updates on UU the Vote activities, and how to get involved in voter registration, voter protection, and other pro-democracy efforts, you can get the latest on the group’s official website.