Executive Order 14019: Promoting Access to Voting
President: Joseph R. Biden Jr.
Directed federal agencies to assess ways to facilitate voter registration and election information, improve access for people with disabilities, service members, overseas voters and people in federal custody.
Status: Revoked.
Is Executive Order 14019 still in effect? No. Executive Order 14148 revoked Executive Order 14019 on January 20, 2025.
What does Executive Order 14019 do?
EO 14019 directed federal agencies to examine how their public-facing services could improve voter registration and participation. Agency heads had 200 days to prepare strategic plans. The text identified information on websites and forms, distribution of registration or absentee-ballot applications and assistance consistent with applicable law. It did not replace state election administration or authorize federal officials to waive voter eligibility requirements. Official source.
Several assignments were more specific. GSA was to modernize Vote.gov, OPM to recommend support for federal employees’ voting and nonpartisan poll work, NIST to examine accessibility, and Defense to improve registration offers and absentee-ballot procedures for service members and overseas voters. Justice was to improve information and assistance for eligible people in federal custody and under supervision, while supporting access to identification after incarceration. Official source.
The order also established a Native American voting-rights steering group, chaired by the domestic-policy adviser with named Cabinet departments participating. It required tribal consultation and recommendations within a year. Agencies requested by states to serve as voter-registration agencies were generally to consent where practicable and lawful, with a written explanation to the President if they declined. This used an existing National Voter Registration Act mechanism rather than creating a new federal electoral roll. Official source.
Before and after
Before the order
Federal programs already interacted with eligible voters, but voting information and assistance varied by agency. The National Voter Registration Act permitted designated federal offices to provide registration services with state requests and federal consent. EO 14019 superseded section 3 of EO 12926 and set a new executive policy favoring lawful participation in that framework. Official source.
After the order
Agencies received planning duties and specific digital, accessibility and military-voting assignments. Justice’s May 20, 2022 release of a guide to state voting rules after criminal convictions documents implementation linked to section 9. The guide did not itself restore a person’s eligibility where state law withheld it. EO 14148 revoked the executive order January 20, 2025; underlying voting-rights statutes and eligibility rules remained separate sources of law. Official source.
Who had to do what
| Agency / office | Action | Timing / position |
|---|---|---|
| Agency heads / domestic-policy adviser | Review voting assistance and submit strategic plans; agencies with overseas staff designate voting coordinators. | Plans within 200 days; coordinator designation has no separate deadline. |
| OMB Office of Electronic Government Administrator | Coordinate accessible federal election-information websites and digital services. | No separate deadline. |
| GSA | Modernize Vote.gov and coordinate with Election Assistance Commission and stakeholders. | Strategic plan within 200 days. |
| Election Assistance Commission | Coordinate with GSA and consult on NIST’s accessibility review. | During respective planning and 270-day review periods. |
| OPM Director | Coordinate agency recommendations on time off to vote, including early voting, and support for nonpartisan poll workers or observers. | Within 200 days. |
| NIST / Commerce Department | Evaluate accessible federal registration form and barriers to private, independent voting; publish recommendations. | Within 270 days. |
| Defense Secretary / Federal Voting Assistance Program | Offer active-duty members annual registration or absentee-ballot opportunities; assess online service; plan end-to-end absentee-ballot tracking. | Procedures, feasibility assessment and tracking plan within 200 days. |
| State Department / Military Postal Service Agency / United States Postal Service | Coordinate with Defense on comprehensive absentee-ballot tracking for military and eligible overseas voters. | Within Defense’s 200-day planning process. |
| Attorney General / Bureau of Prisons / U.S. Marshals Service | Provide eligibility-related voting information; establish practicable assistance and jail-contract provisions; support postrelease identification. | No fixed deadline; consistent with applicable eligibility law. |
| Probation and Pretrial Services Office, Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts | Coordinate with Justice on information and assistance for eligible people under supervision. | As procedures are established; no fixed deadline. |
| Native American Voting Rights Steering Group: domestic-policy adviser, Justice, Interior, Agriculture, Labor, HHS and Veterans Affairs | Consult tribes, study barriers and recommend protections; Interior provides administrative support. | Report within one year. |
| Agencies requested for state registration designation | Consent where practicable and lawful, notify states of available public-facing services, or explain refusal to President. | On relevant state request; no fixed deadline. |
What happened next
Biden signs EO 14019 and directs agency plans. Official source
Justice releases the state voting-rules guide developed in response to section 9. Official source
EO 14148 revokes EO 14019. Official source
Legal and source detail
How it works legally
The order referenced the National Voter Registration Act, Rehabilitation Act accessibility requirements, the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act and federal reentry-planning duties. Assistance depended on existing law and eligibility, including state rules for people with convictions. The repeated lawful-implementation condition prevented the order from independently changing who could vote. It preserved agency authority, OMB functions and appropriations limits and did not create an enforceable private right to a particular registration service. Official source.
Sources by type
If a source is unavailable, first check the cited publisher or another official repository. The cited publisher remains the authority.
Primary and official sources
Orders, laws, court records and official implementation material.
How we checked this
Last checked against the sources above on September 24, 2026. How we research →