The Future of Senate Bill 97 and its Consequences: Part II
February 16, 2022
Part I of this blog post discussed Texas Senate Bill 97, and the dangerous changes it would make to election audits in Texas. The proposed bill was put forward to address unsubstantiated claims of voter fraud that allegedly transpired during the 2020 presidential election, and it appears to be an element of a larger campaign by Trump’s Republican coalition to undermine the results of that election. Critics argue that Senate Bill 97 would create an unnecessary and potentially dangerous election auditing system.
Shifting Deadlines: How Changes in the Statutory Redistricting Deadlines Will Impact California’s Elections and Voters (Part 2 of 2)
February 14, 2022
By: Elizabeth Profaci
As discussed in part one of this two-part series, California passed the VOTERS First Act (“the Act”) in 2008, and ever since, the California Citizens Redistricting Commission (“the Commission”) has drawn the state’s legislative and congressional districts. As part of the redistricting process, the Act imposes deadlines on the Commission, in part to ensure the public has enough time to participate in the redistricting process. The COVID-19 pandemic caused delays in the release of census data and so, in Legislature v. Padilla, the California Supreme Court adjusted the deadlines imposed by the Act to allow the deadlines to change based on federal delay. However, in Legislature v. Weber, the California Supreme Court ordered the Commission to release the preliminary maps no later than November 15, 2021, and to approve and certify the final maps by December 27, 2021.
This change to the deadlines coincided with the holidays and there were concerns that this will affect the public’s ability to meaningfully comment on the proposed maps. As early as May 2021, community-based organizations and civil rights groups submitted comments to the Commission urging later deadlines. The Integrated Voter Engagement (IVE) Redistricting Alliance, which was created to “empower low-income Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) residents to participate in the 2021 state and local redistricting processes and empower community residents to participate,” explained that community groups will hold workshops and meetings so that they can meaningfully contribute to the redistricting process. The IVE urged the Commission to move the deadlines outside the holiday period, otherwise, communities will not be able to contribute to and participate in the redistricting process in the same way they would in a normal year.
Ranked Choice Voting: DC Considers Changing its Ballots
February 11, 2022
By: Luke Foley
Ranked choice voting could be coming to DC as soon as 2024. On July 14, 2021, At-Large DC Councilmember Christina Henderson introduced the Vote Ownership, Integrity, Choice, and Equity (VOICE) Amendment Act, which proposes to implement ranked choice voting (RCV) in all district elections, including those for Mayor, City Council, U.S. President, and Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives. Henderson laid out her case for RCV in a July press release:
“The benefits of RCV are just as diverse as the candidates who are empowered to run under this system. Candidates are incentivized to campaign positively to appeal to the supporters of other candidates as a backup preference… races are more dynamic and collegial with genuine policy debates supplanting negative campaign tactics.”
A Bonus Seat for the Ocean State?
February 9, 2022
By: Peter Quinn
It would probably surprise most Americans that tiny Rhode Island, the smallest U.S. state by area, has been afforded at least two members of the House of Representatives since the 1790s. The census reapportionment process has been very kind to the state as of late, resulting in the state retaining its current two seats for the last ten censuses, losing a third seat during the Great Depression. This is especially stark when compared to Delaware, with only about 100,000 fewer people than Rhode Island but bereft of multiple Representatives throughout its history other than from 1813-23.
In the run-up to the 2020 Census, however, Rhode Islanders began to worry that their population growth was not keeping pace with other states, or at least not enough to guarantee the continued existence of its second seat. With the state controlled by Democrats, including the holders of both House seats, a potentially ugly fight was brewing that would determine who would become the standard-bearer when the two districts consolidated.
Alaska’s Gubernatorial Recall Laws After #RecallDunleavy
February 7, 2022
By: Ellie Halfacre
The only recall petition filed against the state’s governor in Alaska’s history was unsuccessful. When looking at the history of gubernatorial recalls in the United States, this is unsurprising: four governors have faced recall elections, and only two have ever been recalled.
In July 2019, Recall Dunleavy campaign organizers hoped to change that. After one year in office, Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy used his veto power to cut $444 million from the state’s budget. This move, which would have defunded the state’s university system by 41 percent and reduced Medicaid funding, led to a “political mess” among legislators. In response, Alaskan citizens began a petition campaign to recall Gov. Dunleavy from the governor’s office.
Maine Completes Expedited Redistricting
February 4, 2022
By: Connor Skelly
On September 29, 2021, Maine Governor Janet Mills signed legislation creating new maps for Maine’s Congressional, State House, and State Senate districts. In Maine, the power to draw districts is given to a bipartisan apportionment commission.
The composition of this commission is mandated by the Maine Constitution to be: three members of the Maine House of Representatives from the majority party who shall be appointed by the House Speaker; three members of the House from the next largest party who shall be appointed by that party’s leader; two members of the majority party from the state Senate who shall be appointed by the President of the Senate; two members of the Senate from the next largest party who shall be appointed by their party’s Floor Leader, the chairperson of each of Maine’s two major political parties; and three members of the public.
Virginia Passes State-Level Voting Rights Measure Mirroring Original Federal 1965 Voting Rights Act
February 2, 2022
By: Sarah Fisher
In March 2021, Virginia—a state historically marked by racially discriminatory practices in voting—became the first state formerly covered by the landmark federal 1965 Voting Rights Act to adopt state-level voting rights legislation modeled off of the Civil Rights Era measure.
Under the 1965 Act, certain cities, counties, and states with a history of race-based discrimination in voting were required to seek approval (called “preclearance”) from the United States Attorney General before making any changes to their election laws, regulations, or practices. The group of states and municipalities required to seek preclearance was determined by a formula that considered the jurisdiction’s use of certain discriminatory voting practices (such as poll taxes) and the jurisdiction’s voter registration and participation rates as of 1968.
New Jersey: An Experiment in Early Voting Expansion
January 31, 2022
By: Tim Intelisano
Earlier this year, New Jersey expanded in person early voting in the state. Now, that legislation was put to the test in the 2021 general election in early November.
Thus far, it has not been smooth sailing. For one, many counties struggled to recruit enough poll workers. This is an issue that other states, including Ohio, also bemoaned this year. The concern in New Jersey was so severe that newly re-elected Governor Phil Murphy used an executive order to raise the pay of election workers. The pay raise was modest—going from $200 to $300 dollars for a day’s work. It did not escape notice that workers in the June primary were paid $400 dollars for a day of service, though that higher award was attributed almost exclusively to the dangers and uncertainty around coronavirus. Additionally, Governor Murphy’s executive order also permitted poll workers to work outside of the county where they resided. Officials felt that this would be a useful tool for municipalities, since for unknown reasons some towns and counties just had an easier time signing up the requisite number of poll workers.
Massachusetts Automatic Voter Registration
January 28, 2022
By: Adriana Dunn
On August 9, 2018, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker signed into law an automatic voter registration (AVR) bill, making Massachusetts the fourteenth state to approve of AVR. The law became effective January 1, 2020, over a month before the registration deadline for the 2020 primaries. The new system works with existing state agencies such as the Department of Motor Vehicles and Massachusetts health insurance systems (MassHealth and the Commonwealth Health Connector). A U.S. citizen in Massachusetts will be automatically registered to vote when they apply for or renew: a driver’s license, a learner’s permit, a state ID, MassHealth benefits, or health insurance through the Mass Health Connector. After applying for one of these services, the citizen will be mailed a postcard informing them that they have been registered to vote, unless they should choose to opt-out.
Upcoming Bill Could Make Illinois the Third State to Allow All Incarcerated People to Vote
January 28, 2022
By: Andrew Heiser
Brian Harrington spent thirteen years in prison after being charged with murder at the age of sixteen. During that time, he was able to build skills he hoped to use outside of prison, work on self-improvement, and raise awareness about the shortcomings of the criminal justice system. There was, however, one thing he could not do: vote.
In Illinois, as in almost every state, incarcerated felons lose their right to vote while they are incarcerated (though unlike some states, in Illinois the right to vote is restored immediately upon release). Only two states, Maine and Vermont, and the District of Columbia currently allow all people in prison to vote during their incarceration. Alabama, Alaska, and Mississippi also allow some prisoners to vote if they were not convicted of certain crimes—though which crimes specifically cause those with felony convictions to lose the right to vote can seem arbitrary, and many are not made aware of the distinction.