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.
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.
Authors R. Michael Alvarez (California Institute of Technology) and Jonathan Nagler (New York University) have analyzed the likely impact on voter turnout should Hawaii adopt Election Day Registration (EDR).
The household economy — especially small business, homeowners and student borrowers — will continue to suffer during a sever tightening of lending credit and capital, in spite of the federal rescue plan, this new report shows.
The New Squeeze underscores how the continuing fallout from sub-prime speculation, resetting Adjustable Rate Mortgages (ARMs) and a severe tightening of lending credit and capital could impact the United States household economy for years to come.
A middle-class standard of living requires that families have adequate financial security to meet current obligations, invest in the future, and access opportunities. The Middle Class Security Index, created by Demos and the Institute on Assets and Social Policy at Brandeis University, focuses on five interrelated factors that in combination describe the security or vulnerability of middle-class families—assets, education, housing, budget and healthcare.
Economic security for seniors was built on the three-legged stool of retirement (Social Security, pensions, and savings) at the core of the social contract that rewards a lifetime of productivity. Economic security of seniors, however, is being challenged by two simultaneously occurring trends: a weakening of the three legs of retirement security income and dramatically increasing expenses, such as for healthcare and housing.
Economic security for seniors was built on the three-legged stool of retirement (Social Security, pensions, and savings) at the core of the social contract that rewards a lifetime of productivity. Seniors’ economic security, however, is being challenged by two simultaneously occurring trends: a weakening of the three legs of retirement security income and dramatically increasing expenses, such as for healthcare and housing.
The Contract for College would unify the existing three strands of federal financial aid — grants, loans and work-study — into a coherent, guaranteed financial aid package for students.
When Congress passed the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) in 1993, its goals were to "increase the number of eligible citizens who register to vote in elections for Federal office" and "protect the integrity of the electoral process." Yet, while most states created effective programs for mail-in and Department of Motor Vehicles-based registration processes, many neglected the NVRA's social service agency requirements (detailed in Section 7).
Today headlines are filled with stories of middle-class families struggling to survive the current downturn. But the problems of middle-class families did not start with the recession.
Between 2000 and 2006, the number of middle-class families that lacked economic security grew from 19 to 23 million. Decline in assets, the rising cost of housing, and more families lacking health insurance depleted middle-class economic resources, leaving millions of families poorly positioned to weather the current recession.
It is becoming increasingly difficult for Americans to achieve and sustain a middle-class life. The costs of homeownership, healthcare and a college education have soared, while incomes have stagnated. According to the Middle Class Security Index, a measure developed by Demos and the Institute on Assets and Social Policy at Brandeis University, fewer than one third of middle-income families were securely in the middle class in 2006, while a quarter were at high risk of falling out of the middle class.
Same Day Voter Registration (also known as Election Day Registration) permits eligible citizens to register and vote on the same day.
This fact sheet outlines some of the advantages of Same Day Registration, particularly its impact on voter turnout and its potential to ensure that every vote is properly counted, as well as a look at why we need Same Day Registration in America's "patchwork quilt of registration processes," and some success stories from states that have successfully utilized Same Day Registration in the 2008 presidential election.
We have analyzed the likely impact on voter turnout should California adopt Election Day Registration (EDR). The availability of EDR procedures should give voters who have not previously registered or need to update their information the opportunity to vote. Consistent with existing research on the impact of Election Day Registration in the other states that use this process, we find that EDR would likely lead to substantial increases in voter turnout. We offer the following voter turnout estimates for California under EDR:
R. Michael Alvarez of the California Institute of Technology and Jonathan Nagler of NYU analyze the likely impact of Election Day Registration on voter turnout in Iowa.
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.
Twelve years since the enactment of the NVRA, states across the country have regularly failed to comply with public assistance voter registration requirements.