With consistent low voter registration, low voter turnout, and barriers to voting, Arkansas consistently ranks at the bottom or near the bottom among all states in voting participation. Get Loud Arkansas (GLA) was launched in
late 2021 to focus on improving registration and participation to ensure that the fundamental right of voting and of fair elections is a promise kept for ALL eligible Arkansans.

Co-founded and led by former State Senator Joyce Elliott through 2024, GLA has focused relentlessly on expanding the electorate and engaging in civic education. In GLA’s first two years, over 6,239 voters were registered in 64
counties, and in 2022, almost 30,000 low-turnout voters were mobilized to cast a ballot in eight priority counties. GLA conducted voter registration drives across the state, including on college campuses, with the focus of three
campus coordinators.

In 2023 GLA monitored legislation designed to disenfranchise voters and voter purges that targeted low-income voters and people of color. Thanks to social media, texts, and direct outreach, GLA was able to reach thousands of voters at-risk of being purged due to outdated voter registration.

In 2024, GLA’s focus on voter registration continued, then was sidelined when then-Secretary of State John Thurston banned GLA’s use of online registration tools. GLA filed suit, alleging the requirement of a “wet signature” violated
the 1964 Civil Rights Act. Currently, the case is on appeal.

GLA staff and volunteers mailed, texted, and knocked on doors to encourage participation in the 2024 elections. A bus tour through the AR Delta focused on counties with historic low turnout and high percentages of minority voters. Other volunteers were trained by GLA staff to monitor the November election, working in 20 target counties across the state.

2025 brings new challenges and opportunities for GLA, as the AR legislature enacted additional laws to suppress voting and cripple Arkansas’s citizen-led initiative process (direct democracy). 2025 is GLA’s first year without Joyce
Elliott at the helm. She leaves a strong organization, committed to the work of expanding participation in each election, from the local to the federal level, and working toward an Arkansas where all voices are amplified.