The goal is to focus on how the voice of the powerful and the vulnerable were affected by laws regarding election registration and voter ID, election participation and felony disenfranchisement and how the new form of political voice through financial contributions from political action committees have affected the election landscape. Therefore, in addition to discussing some of the common themes that tie together the various voter ID laws that several states have adopted as well as the judicial responses to those laws we are hoping to consider the broader implications for democracy and steps that can be taken to resolve the controversies surrounding Election 2012. We will in effect be exploring in hindsight whether there was anything different about the Election of 2012 from a historical perspective and what did the Election of 2012 teach us about our democracy? As well, we will consider how the various new laws impacted vulnerable populations such as Latina/o and Black voters.