­What Public Health Should Know About Voting Rights in 2026

Overview

Civic participation, including voting, is a social determinant of health. Who gets to vote, and whose vote counts, shapes every downstream health decision. When communities are drawn out of power or excluded from voting, their health needs become easier to ignore, and elected officials become less accountable to the public they are supposed to serve. Systemic failures like this hurt everyone, especially those whose voices continue to be silenced at the ballot box, and our collective health pays for it. This fact sheet discusses the evidence linking voting and health, and the rising concern with regard to voting rights in the U.S.