1

Fact sheet: Disability and Voter Turnout in the 2020 Elections

Lisa Schur and Douglas Kruse1

Key points:

• Voter turnout surged among citizens with disabilities in 2020, as it did in 2018. Their 

turnout increased by 5.9 points relative to the 2016 general election, which was slightly 

more than the 5.3 point increase among citizens without disabilities.

• The turnout gap between people with and without disabilities decreased slightly in 

2016-2020 from 6.3 to 5.7 points.

• 17.7 million people with disabilities reported voting in the November 2020 elections.

• Combined with a recent U.S. Election Assistance Commission study finding that 11% 

of voters with disabilities had some type of difficulty voting in 2020, this indicates a 

total of 1.95 million voters with disabilities experienced voting difficulties.

• The increased turnout among people with disabilities occurred across all disability 

types and demographic categories—gender, race/ethnicity, age group, and region.

• Employed people with disabilities were just as likely as employed people without 

disabilities to vote in 2020—as in previous elections—suggesting that employment 

helps bring people with disabilities into mainstream political life.

• Voting by mail increased during the pandemic for people both with and without 

disabilities, and voters with disabilities continued to be more likely to use this option. 

Just over half (52%) voted by mail before election day, compared to 40% of voters 

without disabilities. Only one-fourth (26%) voted at the polling place on election day, 

compared to almost one-third (31%) of voters without disabilities.

• States providing easier access to voting by mail in 2020 appeared to have higher turnout 

increases since 2016 among voters with disabilities, although differences were within 

the margin of error.

• If people with disabilities voted at the same rate as people without disabilities who have 

the same demographic characteristics, there would be about 1.75 million more voters.

These figures are based on analysis of data from the federal government’s Current 

Population Survey Voting Supplement for November 2020, with a sample size of 81,898. The 

computations use six disability questions introduced on the Current Population Survey in 2008. 

1

 Professors at the School of Management and Labor Relations, Rutgers University, 50 Labor Center 

Way, New Brunswick, NJ, 08901, Lschur@smlr.rutgers.edu and Dkruse@smlr.rutgers.edu. 
 

2

Disability and voter turnout in 2016 and 2020

2016 2020 Change 2016-2020

People without disabilities 62.2% 67.5% 5.3%

People with disabilities 55.9% 61.8% 5.9%

Disability turnout gap -6.3% -5.7% 0.6%

Hearing impairment 62.7% 68.5% 5.8%

Visual impairment 53.7% 59.2% 5.5%

Mental or cognitive impairment 43.5% 50.7% 7.2%

Difficulty walking or climbing stairs 55.8% 60.4% 4.6%

Difficulty dressing or bathing 44.5% 49.4% 4.9%

Difficulty going outside alone 44.7% 51.6% 6.9%

Turnout increased more for people with disabilities from 2016 to 2020 (5.9%) than for 

people without disabilities (5.3%). Because of the larger increase for people with disabilities, the 

estimated disability turnout gap shrank from -6.3% in 2016 to -5.7% in 2020. The decrease in 

the gap was not, however, outside the margin of error, so we cannot be confident of a true 

change in the disability gap over this period.

As shown above, among the voting eligible population (citizens age 18 or older), 61.8% 

of people with disabilities reported voting in 2020, compared to 67.5% of people without 

disabilities. Within the disability population, the voting rate among people with hearing 

impairments (68.5%) was higher than the overall voting rate for people without disabilities, and 

the lowest rate was among those with difficulty dressing or bathing (49.4%). For each disability 

group except those with hearing impairments, the difference in turnout from those without 

disabilities is strong enough to be outside the survey’s margin of error.2

2

 The margins of error are based on a 95% level of confidence.

55.9%

61.8% 62.2%

67.5%

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

70.0%

80.0%

Disability No disability

2016 2020
 

3

Number of voters and non-voters in 2020

Millions who reported:

Voting Not voting

Overall 154.6 77.0

People without disabilities 136.9 66.0

People with disabilities 17.7 11.0

Hearing impairment 6.1 2.8

Visual impairment 2.3 1.6

Mental or cognitive impairment 4.7 4.5

Difficulty walking or climbing stairs 9.8 6.5

Difficulty dressing or bathing 2.3 2.3

Difficulty going outside alone 5.3 5.0

People without disabilities in disability households 13.1 6.9

Total in disability households 30.8 17.9

An estimated total of 154.6 million people reported voting based on this survey, which is 

just under the total of 159.7 million ballots counted.3 Any misreporting is unlikely to differ 

between the disability and non-disability populations, so the estimate of the turnout gap should 

be unbiased.

The estimated 17.7 million voters with disabilities compares with an estimated 18.9 

million Blacks and 16.5 million Hispanics/Latinos who reported voting in 2020, based on 

analysis of this voting supplement. It should be noted that the disability total may be understated 

because these disability measures may not capture several types of disability.4

Among the 136.9 million voters without disabilities, 13.1 million lived in a household 

with a person with a disability. Combined with voters with disabilities, there were 30.8 million 

voters in disability households, equaling 20% of all voters.

Some of the disability turnout gap may be due to other demographic differences between 

people with and without disabilities. When adjusted for gender, race, age, education, and state of 

residence, the estimated gap expands slightly from 5.7 points to 6.3 points. This implies that if 

people with disabilities voted at the same rate as otherwise-similar people without disabilities, 

there would be an additional 1.75 million voters.

Some of the lower turnout of people with disabilities is tied to difficulties in voting. A 

national survey sponsored by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) following the 

2020 elections found that 11% of voters with disabilities had some type of difficulty in voting, 

3

 2020g - United States Elections Project (electproject.org), accessed 5-2-21

4

 The disability questions measure the major sensory, mobility, and cognitive impairments, but may miss 

some learning disabilities, mental impairments, and physical conditions that do not necessarily limit 

mobility, such as epilepsy and cancer.
 

4

which was almost twice the rate of 6% among voters without disabilities.5 Voting accessibility 

appears to have improved: the likelihood of voting difficulties decreased from 26% in 2012 to 

11% in 2020 among voters with disabilities. In 2020 the rate of difficulties among voters with 

disabilities was 18% among those voting in a polling place, and 5% among those voting with a 

mail ballot.

Combining the 11% rate of voting difficulties from the EAC study with the 17.7 million 

voters with disabilities cited above, this indicates that a total of 1.95 million voters with 

disabilities had some type of difficulty in voting in 2020.

Apart from demographic differences and voting difficulties, prior research has found 

lower disability turnout is partly explained by lower levels of income, lower levels of political 

recruitment, and lower feelings of political efficacy.6

5

 U.S. Election Assistance Commission Study on Disability and Voting Accessibility in the 2020 

Elections | U.S. Election Assistance Commission (eac.gov). 

6

 The prior findings are summarized in Lisa Schur, Todd Shields, and Kay Schriner, “Voting,” in Gary 

Albrecht, ed., Encyclopedia of Disability (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2005), and Lisa 

Schur and Meera Adya, “Sidelined or Mainstreamed? Political Participation and Attitudes of People 

with Disabilities in the United States, Social Science Quarterly, 94(3), 2013, pp. 811-839.
 

5

Breakdown by employment status and demographics

There was no gap in voter turnout between employed people with and without 

disabilities, indicating that employment helps provide resources and social contacts that 

encourage voting.7 The disability voting gap was concentrated among the non-employed, as 

shown in the numbers below. The disability gap was also:

• larger among women than among men, reflecting especially high voter turnout among 

women without disabilities in 2020

• larger among White non-Hispanic people than among other race and ethnicity groups

• larger among middle-aged (35-49) than among younger and older people

• largest in the Midwest and smallest in the West

Except for the comparisons among the employed and other race/ethnicity, each of these 

disability gaps is strong enough to be outside the survey’s margin of error.

Disability No Disability Disability Gap

2016 2020 2016 2020 2016 2020

Overall 55.9% 61.8% 62.2% 67.5% -6.3% -5.7%

Employed 64.7% 70.9% 63.6% 69.2% 1.1% 1.7%

Not employed 54.0% 59.7% 59.2% 64.4% -5.2% -4.7%

Women 56.4% 62.7% 64.3% 69.2% -7.9% -6.5%

Men 55.4% 60.8% 59.9% 65.6% -4.5% -4.8%

Black non-Hispanic 54.5% 57.7% 60.4% 63.6% -5.9% -5.9%

Hispanic/Latino 42.7% 50.6% 48.0% 54.1% -5.3% -3.4%

White non-Hispanic 58.2% 64.8% 66.4% 71.9% -8.2% -7.1%

Other race/ethnicity 49.4% 54.3% 49.3% 59.6% 0.1% -5.4%

Age 18-34 33.1% 46.1% 49.7% 57.3% -16.5% -11.2%

Age 35-49 46.9% 52.7% 62.9% 66.8% -16.0% -14.1%

Age 50-64 54.5% 60.5% 69.2% 73.7% -14.7% -13.2%

Age 65+ 63.9% 68.0% 73.8% 76.9% -9.9% -8.9%

Northeast 54.7% 63.8% 62.5% 69.6% -7.8% -5.8%

Midwest 58.7% 63.1% 65.2% 69.4% -6.5% -6.3%

South 54.1% 59.5% 60.9% 65.4% -6.8% -5.9%

West 57.3% 62.9% 61.1% 67.5% -3.8% -4.6%

7 This is consistent with other research on the role of employment summarized in Lisa Schur, Todd 

Shields, and Kay Schriner, “Voting,” in Gary Albrecht, ed., Encyclopedia of Disability (Thousand 

Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2005)
 

6

Whether voted by mail and on election day

Among voters with disabilities in 2020, only 26% voted at the polling place on election 

day, compared to 31% of voters without disabilities. The expansion of mail voting opportunities 

during the pandemic greatly expanded the use of mail ballots in 2020. The likelihood of voting 

by mail before election day jumped from 28% in 2016 to 52% in 2020 among voters with 

disabilities, and from 19% to 40% among voters without disabilities. The greater use of mail 

ballots by people with disabilities reflects the mobility problems faced by some people with 

disabilities, and health concerns about voting in person during the pandemic. All of these 

disability gaps, except for “By mail on election day,” are strong enough to be outside the 

survey’s margin of error.

Disability No Disability Disability Gap

2016 2020 2016 2020 2016 2020

How voted:

At polling place on 

election day 52.6% 25.8% 60.9% 31.2% -8.3% -5.4%

At polling place 

before election day 18.1% 21.1% 19.2% 26.9% -1.1% -5.8%

By mail before 

election day 28.4% 51.9% 18.6% 40.4% 9.8% 11.5%

By mail on election 

day 0.9% 1.3% 1.4% 1.5% 0.5% -0.2%
 

7

State Rules on Access to Mail Ballots

A number of states made it easier to vote by mail in 2020 due to the pandemic.

8

 Four 

states did not change their rules requiring an excuse to obtain a mail ballot, while ten states 

continued to require excuses for mail ballots but expanded the available excuses to include 

concerns about COVID-19 or any illness or disability. Another 26 states had “no-excuse” 

systems in place in 2020, allowing citizens to request a mail ballot for any reason (without 

having to reveal a disability). Another five states had all-vote-by-mail systems already in place 

in 2020, and five more states plus Washington, D.C. sent ballots to all voters in recognition of 

the potential difficulties of voting during the pandemic.

As can be seen in the table below, voter turnout was higher among people both with and 

without disabilities in the “no excuse required” and “ballots sent to all” states in 2020. In both 

cases the voter turnout was over 4 points higher among the “ballots sent to all” states than among 

the “excuse required with no expansion of excuses in 2020” states. Because both disability and 

non-disability turnout was higher in these states, the disability gap was similar across the 

different state rules (the disability gap appears lower in the “no excuse required” states, although 

the difference in this disability gap between this group and the other states is within the margin 

of error).

Voter turnout in 2020

State rules on mail ballot access in 2020: Disability No disability Gap

Excuse required with no expansion of excuses 

in 2020 (4 states) 58.2% 64.4% -6.2%

Excuse required but expanded excuses for 

COVID or illness/disability in 2020 (10 states) 59.8% 65.4% -5.7%

No excuse required (26 states) 63.0% 68.3% -5.3%

Ballots sent to all (10 states+DC) 62.8% 68.9% -6.1%

8 Absentee and Mail Voting Policies in Effect for the 2020 Election (ncsl.org)
 

8

The changes in voting by mail rules in 2020 provide an opportunity to do pre/post 

comparisons of 2016 and 2020 turnout in those states. As shown in the table below, the 27 states 

with no change in mail ballot access had a 4.9% increase in voter turnout among people with 

disabilities, while those that made it easier to acquire mail ballots (through expanded excuses or 

switching to a no-excuse system) had a 7.0% increase, and those that switched to sending mail 

ballots to all registered voters had a 6.7% increase. 

While these results point to higher turnout for people with disabilities in states where it 

became easier to vote, the differences in the 2016-2020 turnout increase are with the margin of 

error for people with disabilities. For people without disabilities, in contrast, the 8.4% increase 

in turnout in states where all voters were sent mail ballots was significantly greater than the 

turnout in the other states.

Voter turnout

Disability No disability Change from 2016-2020

Changes in mail ballot access 

from 2016 to 2020 2016 2020 2016 2020 Disability

No 

disability

No change in mail ballot access

(27 states) 57.4% 62.3% 62.5% 67.4% 4.9% 5.0%

Easier to request mail ballot in 

2020 than in 2016 (16 states) 53.9% 61.0% 63.2% 67.2% 7.0% 4.0%

All voters sent ballots in 2020, 

but not in 2016 (7 states + DC) 54.7% 61.4% 59.6% 68.0% 6.7% 8.4%
 

9

State Breakdowns in Voter Turnout

The voter turnout gap between people with and without disabilities varied by state, as 

shown in the breakdown below. It should be cautioned that the sample size is low in many 

states, which increases the margin of error and decreases the likelihood of finding a disability 

gap that exceeds the margin of error. The disability gap in 2020 was large enough to be outside 

the margin of error (indicated by an “*”) in 16 states, and was within the margin of error in the 

remaining 34 states and the District of Columbia.

Disability No Disability Disability Gap

2016 2020 2016 2020 2016 2020

U.S. 55.9% 61.8% 62.2% 67.5% -6.3% * -5.7% *

Alabama 47.4% 52.5% 59.4% 61.8% -12.0% * -9.3% *

Alaska 60.1% 55.6% 61.5% 64.9% -1.5% -9.3%

Arizona 66.2% 76.8% 59.6% 71.3% 6.6% 5.6%

Arkansas 51.2% 48.0% 60.1% 55.1% -8.9% * -7.2% *

California 52.3% 58.8% 58.6% 65.9% -6.3% * -7.0% *

Colorado 69.0% 66.4% 69.5% 67.7% -0.6% -1.3%

Connecticut 65.0% 63.7% 63.8% 67.0% 1.3% -3.3%

Delaware 53.0% 58.6% 63.5% 68.9% -10.5% * -10.3% *

Florida 58.9% 61.6% 59.5% 62.2% -0.7% -0.6%

Georgia 57.8% 62.8% 60.6% 66.4% -2.7% -3.6%

Hawaii 54.1% 61.1% 46.3% 64.8% 7.7% -3.6%

Idaho 65.1% 59.7% 61.6% 65.8% 3.5% -6.1%

Illinois 65.8% 64.3% 63.5% 68.9% 2.3% -4.6%

Indiana 49.4% 59.3% 59.7% 61.2% -10.3% * -2.0%

Iowa 56.1% 67.4% 64.7% 70.9% -8.6% * -3.5%

Kansas 53.0% 58.7% 62.9% 66.8% -9.9% * -8.1%

Kentucky 42.5% 64.1% 60.2% 69.5% -17.6% * -5.3%

Louisiana 48.2% 57.7% 64.0% 62.6% -15.7% * -4.8%

Maine 68.2% 68.8% 73.5% 71.9% -5.3% -3.0%

Maryland 60.4% 59.4% 66.4% 75.1% -6.0% -15.7% *

Massachusetts 59.6% 63.7% 67.6% 66.7% -8.1% * -3.0%

Michigan 63.7% 60.1% 64.4% 68.0% -0.7% -7.9% *

Minnesota 58.7% 76.3% 69.9% 78.0% -11.2% * -1.8%

Mississippi 63.2% 62.6% 68.6% 71.8% -5.3% -9.2% *

Missouri 55.9% 62.1% 66.2% 67.7% -10.3% * -5.6%
 

10

Montana 67.0% 70.6% 65.7% 73.9% 1.3% -3.2%

Nebraska 70.4% 62.8% 66.2% 65.5% 4.2% -2.7%

Nevada 58.2% 59.7% 60.8% 61.7% -2.6% -2.0%

New Hampshire 66.0% 64.3% 69.4% 75.5% -3.4% -11.3% *

New Jersey 58.6% 71.6% 61.8% 79.1% -3.2% -7.5% *

New Mexico 54.4% 64.7% 54.9% 62.3% -0.4% 2.4%

New York 48.8% 61.3% 58.4% 65.2% -9.6% * -3.8%

North Carolina 64.5% 58.9% 68.0% 65.6% -3.5% -6.6% *

North Dakota 60.1% 73.1% 64.7% 66.4% -4.6% 6.8%

Ohio 53.2% 62.5% 65.5% 71.4% -12.3% * -8.9% *

Oklahoma 51.7% 55.4% 57.6% 58.8% -5.9% -3.4%

Oregon 53.9% 70.6% 68.8% 74.7% -14.9% * -4.0%

Pennsylvania 54.1% 61.8% 64.0% 71.6% -9.9% * -9.8% *

Rhode Island 50.0% 62.6% 62.1% 67.0% -12.1% * -4.4%

South Carolina 50.4% 60.0% 64.0% 64.0% -13.5% * -4.0%

South Dakota 51.9% 54.4% 60.1% 59.2% -8.1% -4.8%

Tennessee 47.1% 53.9% 55.1% 68.5% -8.0% * -14.6% *

Texas 51.5% 59.4% 55.9% 64.5% -4.4% * -5.1% *

Utah 63.3% 56.4% 62.6% 64.4% 0.7% -8.0%

Vermont 57.6% 67.7% 63.2% 68.5% -5.6% -0.7%

Virginia 57.4% 68.3% 69.5% 71.9% -12.0% * -3.6%

Washington 62.5% 63.5% 66.8% 72.9% -4.4% -9.4% *

Washington, D.C. 60.0% 80.7% 76.1% 84.3% -16.1% * -3.6%

West Virginia 45.9% 53.6% 52.0% 56.6% -6.1% * -3.0%

Wisconsin 63.9% 63.6% 71.6% 75.0% -7.7% * -11.4% *

Wyoming 54.5% 61.4% 66.1% 66.2% -11.6% * -4.9%
 

11

Voter Registration

The disability voting gap is due in part to lower voter registration, but is due more to a 

lower likelihood of voting if registered. Among people with disabilities, 70% were registered to 

vote, only 3 points lower than the rate for people without disabilities. Among those who were 

registered, 88% voted, which was 4 points lower than for registered people without disabilities. 

People with disabilities were more likely than those without disabilities to have registered at a 

town hall or registration office, public assistance agency, polling place, or registration drive, and 

less likely to have registered at a department of motor vehicles, school, hospital, or campus, or 

using the Internet.

Each of these disability gaps is strong enough to be outside the survey’s margin of error, 

except for the gap in registering by mail.

Disability No 

Disability

Disability 

Gap

Registered to vote 70.1% 73.0% -2.9%

Voted if registered 88.1% 92.4% -4.3%

How registered to vote:

Went to a town hall or county/ 

government registration office 24.8% 16.7% 8.1%

At a department of motor vehicles 28.4% 35.2% -6.9%

At a public assistance agency 2.0% 1.0% 1.0%

Registered by mail 16.0% 15.4% 0.7%

Registered at polling place 7.1% 5.5% 1.6%

Filled out form at a registration drive 4.5% 3.3% 1.2%

At a school, hospital, or on campus 2.9% 3.7% -0.8%

Registered using the Internet or online 8.8% 15.0% -6.2%

Other 5.5% 4.3% 1.3%
 

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Why people were not registered

The most common expressed reason for not registering to vote, among people both with 

and without disabilities, was a lack of interest in the election or politics. One-fourth of people 

with disabilities (25%) gave “permanent illness or disability” as their reason for not being 

registered.

The disability gaps below are strong enough to be outside the survey’s margin of error, 

except for the small disability gaps in “My vote would not make a difference,” “Did not know 

where or how to register,” “Difficulty with English,” and “Other reason.”

If not registered to vote, why not: Disability No Disability Disability Gap

Not interested in the election or not 

involved in politics 32.0% 42.9% -10.9%

Permanent illness or disability 24.6% 1.1% 23.6%

Did not meet registration deadlines 6.3% 12.3% -6.0%

Not eligible to vote 6.4% 11.1% -4.7%

Concerns about the coronavirus 

(COVID-19) pandemic 4.2% 2.0% 2.2%

My vote would not make a difference 4.2% 5.1% -0.9%

Did not know where or how to register 3.3% 3.3% 0.0%

Did not meet residency requirements/did 

not live here long enough 1.2% 3.3% -2.2%

Difficulty with English 1.1% 1.3% -0.3%

Other reason 16.7% 17.6% -0.8%
 

13

Why people did not vote if registered

Among those who were registered to vote but did not do so in November 2020, about 

one-third (37%) of people with disabilities gave “illness or disability” as the reason for not 

voting, compared to 8% of people without disabilities. People with disabilities were also more 

likely to cite transportation problems as a reason for not voting (4% compared to 2%), consistent 

with their higher rate of voting by mail. They were less likely than people without disabilities to 

say that they were not interested, too busy, out of town, didn’t like the candidates, or had 

registration problems.

The disability gaps below are strong enough to be outside the survey’s margin of error, 

except for the small disability gaps in “Concerns about coronavirus,” “Forgot to vote,” “Bad 

weather conditions,” and “Other.”

Why didn't vote Disability No Disability Disability Gap

Illness or disability (own or family's) 36.5% 8.3% 28.2%

Not interested, felt my vote wouldn't make a 

difference 13.0% 19.3% -6.3%

Didn't like candidates or campaign issues 11.3% 15.9% -4.6%

Concerns about the coronavirus (COVID-19) 

pandemic 5.4% 4.2% 1.2%

Too busy, conflicting work or school schedule 4.3% 15.6% -11.3%

Transportation problems 4.0% 2.1% 1.9%

Forgot to vote (or send in absentee ballot) 3.7% 3.9% -0.2%

Registration problems (i.e. didn't receive absentee 

ballot, not registered in current location) 3.7% 5.4% -1.7%

Out of town or away from home 2.5% 7.1% -4.6%

Inconvenient hours, polling place or hours or lines 

too long 1.7% 2.9% -1.2%

Bad weather conditions 0.2% 0.0% 0.2%

Other 13.7% 15.3% -1.6%