The Gingko Gazete

A survey by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation found that more than 94% of registered LGBTQ+ voters say they plan to vote in the midterms: 87% definitely and another 7.5% probably. The advocacy group estimates that 25.6 million U.S. adults, or 12%, identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community. The survey points to a high number of queer voters placing a ballot, but it measures only intent, and intent is only a prediction of turnout. For us to survive and to protect our most vulnerable, showing up matters beyond checking a box on a questionnaire.

According to the Washington Post, almost 20 million voters across five states will decide ballot measures concerning transgender youth on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Ballotpedia, an election reference site, says the measures would set rules for who can play on school sports teams and ban certain medical care for transgender minors, and one would also repeal an abortion rights amendment that voters approved in 2024. Because only five states have these on their ballots, the measures, if passed, would not set national policy. However, more than two dozen Republican-led states have already passed legislation to restrict transgender athletes, and the U.S. Supreme Court upheld such laws this past June. For our most vulnerable in the states where the measures pass, the outcomes may decide who keeps access to care and who is allowed to feel safe and affirmed as they participate in sporting events.

In a statement to the Associated Press, the Department of Homeland Security sought to reassure, saying, “ICE is not planning operations targeting polling locations.” DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin has said officers could still go to a polling place to make a warrant arrest or respond to a threat, and President Donald Trump has not ruled out sending them. We are watching what is said differ from what is carried out: ProPublica counted 506 U.S. citizens detained by immigration agents during the Trump administration, while DHS says ICE has “significant protections in place to ensure U.S. citizens are not arrested, detained, or mistakenly removed.” Federal law bars “troops or armed men” from polls, but groups are preparing for the possibility anyway. For those of us most affected by these policies, fear alone can be enough to keep us from the polls.

The American Association of People with Disabilities said in comments on a U.S. Postal Service rule that would have restricted mail ballot delivery that for many voters with disabilities, “voting by mail is the only way they can participate in elections.” The claim holds up: more than half of voters with disabilities voted by mail in 2020, according to the group, and about 40.2 million eligible voters had disabilities in 2024, nearly one-sixth of the electorate, according to a Rutgers University projection. The Supreme Court on Sept. 14 left a block on the rule in place for these midterms, NPR reported, though the legal fight over future elections is expected to continue. We see the rule as an attack on democracy. For many voters with disabilities, a ballot in the mail is the difference between voting and not voting.

Voters who want to know what they are deciding on their ballots regularly encounter language that averages the reading level of a first-year graduate student, according to Ballotpedia’s analysis of 164 statewide measures in 40 states. The title of one measure on minors’ gender-related surgeries scored grade 41, higher than any level of formal education. Ballotpedia notes that the scores reflect sentence structure and not the complexity of the ideas; however, the effect on a reader can be the same. For our most vulnerable, an unreadable ballot is a barrier to their vote.

Groups are organizing so that fewer voters are forced to face the polls alone in the current hostile political climate. Vote Safe, a nonpartisan coalition that includes the National Action Network and the American Federation of Teachers, announced plans on Sept. 2 to place hundreds of trained volunteers at polls in Ohio, Georgia, North Carolina and Michigan. Mary Corcoran, executive director of the Save America Movement, described the volunteers’ role as “de-escalatory” and “bearing witness.” Voters in any state can call the Election Protection hotline, 866-OUR-VOTE, which is run by the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. For our most vulnerable, having someone beside us at the polls can be an important factor in whether we show up or stay in line.

Backers of the bans cite public opinion, and no matter how unfounded that opinion is, its impact is real: Quinnipiac University found in June that 70% of registered voters think trans women and girls should not be allowed to play on women’s and girls’ school teams. Voters are also being saturated with scapegoating and propagandized sensationalism. AdImpact estimates Republicans spent $183 million through Oct. 25 on about 217,000 TV ads that use trans people as an attack line, compared with roughly $11 million from Democrats, largely in defense. Our communities are under fire. An AP-NORC poll in October found about 1 in 10 voters call trans issues one of the most important, while about 8 in 10 cite the economy or cost of living. The urgency behind legislating the lives of trans people is manufactured, and voters’ own priorities show it.

Solidarity at the polls is a moral imperative, a duty to your fellow humans, not a favor, especially for those who move through public life without fear and hold a privilege others do not. The law already gives allies roles to play in protecting those at risk. Section 208 of the Voting Rights Act lets voters who need help because of blindness, disability or inability to read or write choose their helper, and 18 U.S.C. § 594 makes intimidating voters illegal. To our allies: accompany voters, document any injustice you see as safely as you can, and report it to election officials and news outlets. Then bring the same effort and energy to every day after Nov. 3. It matters.

Control of Congress shapes whether anything can be done about these attacks on human rights and democracy. Cook Political Report said Oct. 23 that Republicans’ chance of keeping the House “has all but evaporated,” according to Forbes. A Democratic House would gain larger budgets and staffs and the power to subpoena witnesses, with ICE among the targets Democrats have named, the Associated Press reported Sept. 26. The administration may ignore subpoenas, the report notes, and impeachment requires conviction in the Senate, where Democrats need a net gain of four seats. A majority will not rescue us from what we see as a fascist plutocracy. It is, however, a stronger place to defend from.

Editor’s note, opinion.

I am a trans woman who votes. I am worried that democracy in the U.S. is under attack. Not showing up is how those attacking it win. We must show up in droves. We must be loud. It is not going to be easy, and we will need the support of our allies. We need bodies to protect us. We need people who can use their privilege to show solidarity with us and call out the lack of compassion, the missing moral backbone and the unchanging mindset of Republican leaders whose votes and words endanger human rights and our most vulnerable people.

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3. Polling hours and mail ballot deadlines vary from state to state, so check yours with your state or local election office today. Voters in line when the polls close have the right to stay in line and vote, according to the Bipartisan Policy Center. Officials cannot turn away anyone who is in line by closing time. If you run into trouble, call the Election Protection hotline at 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683) or report it to your local election official. Go with someone and save that number. If you see anything, write it down and record it where it is legal. Most certainly, do not forget to vote.

by Gemma Ortwerth
October 29, 2026

References

Listed in the order the claims appear in the piece. The editor’s note is opinion and carries no references.

1. LGBTQ+ voters’ stated intent to vote (87% definitely, 7.5% probably) and the estimate of 25.6 million LGBTQ+ adults. Human Rights Campaign Foundation, LGBTQ+ voters and the 2026 midterms survey
2. Almost 20 million voters across five states deciding ballot measures on Tuesday, Nov. 3. The Washington Post via the Spokesman-Review, “In historic first, voters in five states will decide” transgender ballot measures (Oct. 27, 2026)
3. What the measures would do: set rules for school sports teams, ban certain medical care for transgender minors, and repeal an abortion rights amendment. Ballotpedia News, five 2026 ballot measures on school sports eligibility and medical care for transgender minors (July 23, 2026)
4. More than two dozen Republican-led states restricting transgender athletes, and the Supreme Court upholding such laws in June. The Washington Post via the Spokesman-Review (Oct. 27, 2026) and Ballotpedia News (July 23, 2026)
5. The Department of Homeland Security’s statement that ICE is not planning operations at polling locations, Secretary Markwayne Mullin’s exceptions for a warrant arrest or a threat, and President Trump not ruling out sending officers. Associated Press via MyNorthwest, “Trump administration says it has no plans for ICE officers at polls. Activists are preparing anyway” (Oct. 2026)
6. ProPublica’s count of 506 U.S. citizens detained by immigration agents, and DHS’s statement about protections for citizens. Democracy Now, headline summary of ProPublica’s report (Oct. 7, 2026)
7. Federal law barring “troops or armed men” from polls. Associated Press via MyNorthwest (Oct. 2026)
8. The AAPD quote that voting by mail is the only way many voters with disabilities can participate, and the finding that more than half of voters with disabilities voted by mail in 2020. American Association of People with Disabilities, comments on the U.S. Postal Service rule (June 2026)
9. About 40.2 million eligible voters with disabilities in 2024, nearly one-sixth of the electorate. Rutgers University, School of Management and Labor Relations, disability voter projection
10. The Supreme Court leaving the block on the mail ballot rule in place for the midterms on Sept. 14. NPR via WYPR, “The Supreme Court rejects Trump’s mail voting restrictions for this year’s midterms” (Sept. 14, 2026)
11. Ballot language at a first-year graduate student’s reading level across 164 statewide measures in 40 states, the grade 41 score, and the caveat that the scores reflect sentence structure. Ballotpedia, Ballot measure readability scores, 2026
12. Vote Safe’s Sept. 2 announcement of hundreds of trained volunteers in Ohio, Georgia, North Carolina and Michigan, described as nonpartisan. Truthout, “Voting rights groups are preparing to confront ICE at the polls”
13. The National Action Network and the American Federation of Teachers as partners, and Mary Corcoran’s description of the volunteers’ role as “de-escalatory” and “bearing witness.” NPR via KUNC, “Civil rights advocates plan to send thousands of observers to midterm polling places” (Oct. 14, 2026)
14. The Election Protection hotline, 866-OUR-VOTE, run by the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, partnership to protect voters in the 2026 midterms (July 31, 2026)
15. Seventy percent of registered voters saying trans women and girls should not play on women’s and girls’ school teams. Quinnipiac University national poll (June 24, 2026)
16. Republicans’ estimated $183 million on about 217,000 transgender-related TV ads against Democrats’ roughly $11 million, and the AP-NORC finding that about 1 in 10 voters call trans issues among the most important versus about 8 in 10 for the economy. Associated Press via the Boston Globe (Oct. 28, 2026)
17. Section 208 of the Voting Rights Act: voters who need help may choose their helper. Democracy Docket, “Making Voting Accessible With Section 208 of the VRA”
18. 18 U.S.C. § 594 making voter intimidation illegal, and the advice to document and report what you see. Campaign Legal Center, “Is Voter Intimidation Illegal? What Should I Do If I Experience It?” (Mar. 2024)
19. Cook Political Report’s rating that Republicans’ chance of keeping the House “has all but evaporated.” Forbes, Cook Political Report moves 19 House races toward Democrats (Oct. 23, 2026)
20. A Democratic House’s budgets, staffs and subpoena power, ICE among the named targets, the administration possibly ignoring subpoenas, and impeachment requiring a Senate conviction. Associated Press via MyNorthwest, House Democrats’ plans for oversight of the Trump administration (Sept. 26, 2026)
21. Democrats needing a net gain of four Senate seats. GV Wire, “Who will control Congress after the midterms? Here’s what the polls show” (Oct. 27, 2026)
22. Voters in line when polls close having the right to stay in line and vote. Bipartisan Policy Center, “You have rights when you go to vote at the polls”
23. Officials not turning away anyone in line by closing time. VERIFY via 11Alive, “If you are in line before polls close, you can vote”
24. The hotline number, 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683), and reporting problems to a local election official. Campaign Legal Center (Mar. 2024)