Toward an Equal Electorate draws upon available data to show that low-income voter registration in public assistance agencies have increased anywhere from 22 percent to over 2,600 percent compared to previous years. In the five states examined — North Carolina, Michigan, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Missouri — an additional 125,290 low-income voters have registered at public assistance agencies prior to the November election, most within the past several months.
In July 2008, 49 advocates, scholars, and thinkers met in Washington, D.C. and came to agreement on the outlines of a broad agenda for democracy reform. In the weeks that followed, the participants broke into workgroups and developed the recommendations outlined in this document.
The 2008 Election Primer: Election Administration, Voting Rights & Legal Challenges, provides a comprehensive account of the latest research and litigation on key election issues — including voter registration challenges, voter access, fraud allegations, federal voting requirements, as well as voting rights for low-income citizens, veterans, and citizens with felony convictions.
Under the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA), voters whose names cannot be found on the voter rolls on Election Day or who cannot meet HAVA’s new voter identification requirement must be provided a provisional ballot. These provisional votes are subsequently counted if local election officials are able to verify that the individual is a legitimate voter under state law. With predictions of record turnout, including millions of first-time voters, provisional ballots may play a significant role in the 2008 election.
The Veterans Voting Support Act required that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) agree to state designations of its facilities as voter registration agencies under Section 7 of the NVRA.
Americans are confused and anxious about trade and globalization. On the one hand, many voters fear for their jobs and living standards, worrying about rising competition from developing nations. On the other hand, many Americans see clear benefits from globalization, believe that the United States must engage in the global economy, and want poorer nations to develop. Trading Up offers a new framework for understanding and responding to this phenomenon — one that balances a commitment to markets and open trade with dramatic efforts to reduce inequities and insecurities.
Election Day Registration (EDR), which allows eligible voters to register and cast a ballot on Election Day, is a reform that reduces the unnecessary disfranchisement of eligible voters that may be caused by arbitrary registration deadlines.
2007 was the first year that the North Carolina General Assembly seriously considered Same Day Registration. SDR bills had been introduced in prior years and attracted legislative support, but never gained sufficient traction. This report recounts North Carolina's road to Same Day Registration from three different perspectives: legislative supporters, elections officials and the advocacy community.
Testimony delivered by Democracy Program Counsel Lisa J. Danetz before the Committee on House Administration, Subcommittee on Elections United States House of Representatives on April 1, 2008.
We have analyzed the likely impact on voter turnout should Vermont adopt Election Day Registration (EDR). Under the system proposed in Vermont, eligible voters who miss the current six-day deadline for registering by mail may be able to register to vote on Election Day. The availability of Election Day Registration procedures should give voters who have not previously registered the opportunity to vote. Consistent with existing research on the impact of EDR in the other states that use this process, we find that EDR would likely lead to substantial increases in voter turnout.
Testimony of Demos Counsel Lisa J. Danetz before the United States House of Representatives Subcommittee on Elections on the challenges the National Voter Registration Act presents to public assistance agencies.
Testimony of Demos Democracy Program Director Stuart Comstock-Gay before the Nebraska Legislature's Government, Military, and Veterans' Affairs on Election Day Registration.
Twelve years since the enactment of the NVRA, states across the country have regularly failed to comply with public assistance voter registration requirements.
Testimony of Demos' Democracy Program Legal Director on restoring contribution limits in Vermont, delivered before the Vermont House Government Operations Committee on February 5, 2008.
Election Day Registration (EDR), sometimes called “same day registration” (SDR), allows eligible voters to register and cast a ballot on Election Day. Nine states currently have EDR or SDR laws. Maine, Minnesota and Wisconsin adopted EDR in the 1970s. Idaho, New Hampshire and Wyoming enacted Election Day Registration two decades later. Montana implemented EDR in 2006.
Demos president Miles Rapoport testifies before the U.S. House Administration Sub-Committee on Elections regarding Election Day Registration and provisional voting.