So much news in the US recently has been upsetting, and rarely uplifting; but the champions of voting rights have reasons to be both aghast at recent headlines and encouraged by them. On the one hand, the Trump-Pence “election integrity” commission’s every move continues to underscore concerns that it is driving at 90mph towards national voter suppression. Then there is the sudden decision by Donald Trump and attorney general Jeff Session’s Department of Justice to support purging voter rolls in Ohio. It’s enough to make voters feel like they have targets on their backs.

On the other hand, Rhode Island recently became the ninth state to enact AVR – automatic voter registration – and on 28 August Illinois became the 10th when its Republican governor signed the bill into law. While the federal government perpetuates myths and conspiracies in an effort to justify taking the vote away from citizens, more and more states are taking local action to strengthen and protect this most fundamental democratic right.

Roughly 41% of eligible voters didn’t vote in the 2016 election. Such low voter participation is a significant dent in the credibility and legitimacy of our elections. Our government gains its legitimacy by being representative of the people, but if the reality is that it only represents a little more than half of eligible voters, that premise is shaky.

We cannot make people vote, but we can certainly make it easier for them to do so. And it can be achieved without pillaging state voting records to build a national voter database that is susceptible to abuse and hacking.

AVR involves two steps. The first is that eligible voters are registered to vote, or have their voting information updated, any time they interact with state agencies, or with federal agencies under national AVR. Second, those agencies electronically relay the information to appropriate state electoral officials. The results are more registered voters and more up-to-date voter rolls.

It is one of the single greatest ways to improve the legitimacy of our elections, and in turn our democracy. It results in a default “opt-out” system, whereby people have to take action to opt out of being registered, rather than having to go out of their way to register to vote. Alex Padilla, California’s secretary of state, captured it perfectly when he said: “Citizens should not have to opt in to their fundamental right to vote.”

The right to vote, and peoples’ exercising of it, is a central pillar of the legitimacy of our democracy. Our system of government – the balance of power, the accountability to the people – only works if people vote. It is that simple. And in states that have enacted AVR, it has significantly increased voter registration, and initial indicators point to increased voter participation in elections.

The benefits to our democratic legitimacy should be a case-closed argument for AVR; but there are other reasons AVR makes total sense. It is not only cheaper and less error-prone than the current paper process: it would also clean up existing voter rolls and reduce the potential for voter fraud – two goals often highlighted by those who cry foul over voter fraud concerns.

The push for AVR in many states is being led by secretaries of state, who are often states’ top election officials, and understand the cost and logistical and democratic advantages of AVR. As Rhode Island’s secretary of state recently stated, AVR “will help reduce the bloat in our voter rolls resulting from unintentional, duplicate voter registrations, and help increase voter participation”.

Also encouraging is that this is a bipartisan issue at the state level. Republican legislators and Republican governors have helped enact AVR in different states. Moreover, AVR is popular among citizens, as seen in Alaska, where it was adopted by the voters.

A national AVR bill was introduced in both the House of Representatives and the Senate in June, and if enacted would result in the automatic registration of eligible voters who interact with federal agencies, with the option for individuals to opt out. This could be a huge success for this administration, and is being handed to the White House on a plate. In the House, Robert Brady, a Pennsylvania Democrat), along with 53 co-sponsors, is advancing the proposed bill. And in the Senate Patrick Leahy, a Vermont Democrat, and five co-sponsors are working to move similar legislation.

Momentum exists at the state level as well. AVR is now standard practice in 10 states and the District of Columbia, and legislation has been introduced in as many as 30 other states.

Improving elections doesn’t require a discredited commission, a national database, or an invasion ​of citizens’ privacy

An effort to enact national AVR could motivate more states to enact it at the state level, or expand existing AVR. For instance, to maximize the impact and benefit of AVR, voters should be registered and their information updated any time they interact with a state agency, whether that be housing, education or motor vehicles.

If restricted to interactions with the Department of Motor Vehicles, as is the case in some states, AVR becomes susceptible to the same flaws as restrictive voter ID laws. Many people don’t have a driver’s license and don’t do business with the DMV. They should not be required to procure a driver’s license just to vote. Driving is an option. Voting is a right. National momentum on AVR could promote best practices by states.

Rather than raising concerns about purging voter rolls and voter suppression, the country has an opportunity to champion voting rights and actually improve the legitimacy of our elections and our democracy. It doesn’t require a discredited commission, a national voter database, or an invasion of citizens’ privacy. It just needs lawmakers who genuinely care about voter participation and our democratic legitimacy. If members of Congress are serious about wanting to improve our elections, let’s see them champion AVR and support the Brady and Leahy measures right away.