Civil rights organization the NAACP recently announced a new initiative to mobilize voters for the 2026 election through a series of town halls.
Set to take place from August to October, the Fierce Advocacy in Action Town Halls will host approximately eight town halls across several states in the country in an effort to draw attention to a series of issues revolving around healthcare, food access, environmental justice and education.
The topics discussed will include the actions of the current administration, including the cuts to diversity, equity and inclusion policies as well as the immigration raids. The NAACP will also highlight how the usage of federal budgets impacts Black communities and what needs to be addressed amongst Congress, state lawmakers, and public agencies to help Black communities.
At the town halls, over 1,200 volunteers will also be recruited by the NAACP to support efforts to increase voter turnout for this year’s gubernatorial election and beyond to the 2026 midterm elections.
“As we build toward the 2026 midterm election, our campaign will focus on connecting past liberation struggles to the urgent demands of the present,” said the organization‘s National Director of Advocacy, Wisdom Cole, per a statement. “From attacks on our healthcare to voter suppression and illegal ICE arrests, our democracy is on the line. We don’t have much time to fight back.”
The series will officially start Aug. 12 in New Jersey. Hosted by the Hunterdon chapter of the organization, Congresswoman LaMonica McIver, assistant pastor of the Fountain Baptist Church Rev. Vernon Williams and activist Lawrence Hamm are slated to speak at the event.
Newark Mayor Ras J. Baraka will also take part in the event. In May, Baraka made the news when he was unlawfully arrested for protesting at a federal immigration center last month.
Although the charges were dropped, the Newark mayor is currently suing interim U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Alina Habba for defamation and for violating his Fourth Amendment rights through false arrest and malicious prosecution.
Future town halls will be planned in other states, including Texas, California, Ohio, Georgia, North Carolina, Arizona, New York, Wisconsin and Maryland.
The efforts will build on those practiced during the 2024 presidential election when the NAACP invested more than $20 million in mobilizing Black voters. The organization reportedly recruited more than 100,000 volunteers across 12 of the battleground states. An estimated 14.5 million Black voters were reached through their programs.
