Archive for 2016

In Kansas, a constant stream of legal developments has left just about everyone concerned uncertain about what will be expected on Election Day in November. A new article likens the process to a game of ping-pong – which is an excellent analogy because of the somewhat-frenzied speed with which litigation has changed the landscape. Unfortunately, it looks like the game is far from over.

Three significant court cases in three different states (Virginia, Wisconsin and Texas) had key developments late last week – clarifying if not yet cementing the rules that will be in place for elections this fall.

This week’s electionlineWeekly includes some news I’ve been hinting at for a while but am very excited to share: we will be adding an election design course – inspired, created and taught by the Center for Civic Design’s Whitney Quesenbery and Dana Chisnell – to the offerings at our online program starting this fall!

Yesterday, the full 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Texas’ voter ID law has a discriminatory effect against minority voters and thus must be limited accordingly. It did not, however, overturn the law for all voters.

Wisconsin’s long-running voter ID saga took another turn yesterday as a federal judge ruled that the state must offer affidavits to voters who encounter difficulties obtaining necessary ID documents.

Few topics have excited the collective electiongeek imagination in the last week or so more than the potential for the hot new game Pokemon Go to be used as a means to generate interest in, and turnout at, the polls in November. But given the importance of the election process, before we get too excited about using Pikachu and friends to boost turnout, there are a number of considerations to keep in mind.

Massachusetts is preparing for the advent of early voting, which became law in the Bay State as part of a 2014 bill scheduled to go into effect this year, and many cities and towns are nervous about both the timing of the change as well as the cost. Those concerns are likely to be renewed – and increased – after the veto by Gov. Charlie Baker of $1.2 million in state funding in support of the change.

Oregon’s two U.S. Senators and one House member have introduced a new bill seeking to move the entire nation to vote-by-mail, saying the move would help counteract efforts to restrict voting in many states nationwide. It likely won’t move in the current Congress, but its provisions – including vote by mail and automatic registration – could be a harbinger of federal and state legislative debates to come.

This is the time of the year when election officials want to be finalizing the arrangements for the fall, including polling places. But in Palm Beach County, FL a dispute has emerged over an invitation – subsequently revoked – to a local mosque to serve as a voting location.

Tampa Bay Times columnist Steve Bousquet – a journalist with a long history of reporting on voting issues who covers election administration topics as well as anyone out there – has a new piece looking at the delivery of military and overseas ballots by Florida election officials under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA).