Transcript Congressional Wants Legislation Likely in next few years Current Ideas Circulating as Potentials • federal voter registration and government responsibility for VR; • federal.

Congressional Wants
Legislation Likely in next few years
Current Ideas Circulating as Potentials
• federal voter registration and government responsibility for
VR;
• federal requirement for Election Day Registration;
• federal requirements on how to administer voter information
mismatches in VR;
• uniform definition of how provisional ballots are to be
administered;
• federal requirements on ballot design and layout;
• federal requirements on post election audits;
• potential legislation for restrictions on challenging eligibility of
voters; and
• the continued push to eliminate or restrict use of DREs;
• potential requirements to make absentee mail balloting to any
voter;
Current Ideas Circulating as Potentials
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All states to allow no excuse AB or Early Voting
Standards for purging voters
Prohibition of ID requirements
Restoration of Rights for Felons
Prohibition of Voter Caging (including any use of nonforwardable or nonreturnable documents)
Shortening of waiting times for voters
Paper ballots at all polling locations
Poll Worker Training Programs
Creation of grants for election software
Equitable allocation of voter resources (equipment,
pollworkers, polling places, etc.)
Statewide Voter Database interoperability with other states
Federal Voter Registration
• The thought is that all voters should
have the right to vote in Federal
elections regardless of where they live
– especially for President/VP and US
Senate races. States are “denying”
otherwise qualified citizens from
participating
VR As Government Responsibility
• Those principally offering this want the
Federal government to be responsible for
this but many are willing to have states and
locals take over the function
• This is one of those EOs should give
consideration:
• it eliminates most of the abuses of 3rd party
registrations;
• allows full control by EOs; cannot eliminate
totally voter initiated – has to be way to all voters
to initiate if government misses them.
VR As Government Responsibility
• Considerations:
• Cost Factors – New Costs for government
• According to recent research 95% of
voters have drivers license
• 99% of voters have some form of official
government ID – which means it is likely
they are in databases where elections can
access the information for automatic
registration efforts
VR As Government Responsibility
• If government does the function then
registration lists can be determined in
advance of elections
• If government does this, EDR may no
longer be necessary or makes EDR
easier for states employing it.
• If government does this, should reduce
numbers of Provisional Ballots
Federal Requirement for EDR
• From an administrative standpoint is
government VR preferable to EDR?
• Will positive ID be prohibited with EDR
or a feature of EDR?
Federal Requirements for Voter
Information Mismatches
• Aim is to forestall states establishing
“absolute” matches;
• Also question SSA information as often
inaccurate;
• Other issues
Uniform Handling of Provisional Ballots
• Intent is to eliminate states requiring
voter to go back to correct polling
place and count the ballot for all races
if the voter is otherwise qualified
• Depending on whom is supporting the
changes, make the assumption that
the voter has correctly handled and
that government made the mistake
• Other assumptions
Requirements on Ballot Layout & Design
• Brennan Center and others pushing the
Design for Democracy findings about Ballot
Design and Layout
• Clearly there are some good ideas in the
EAC sponsored study that need to be
learned and taught
• However, if followed absolutely, then ballots
will be many pages – and that will bring both
administrative and integrity questions (how
to keep ballots together for recounts or
audits)
Requirements on Post Election Audits
• Disagreement on whether this is
necessary and useful
• Disagreement on whether an audit is
preferable to an automatic recount
• Unclear what purpose this serves
beyond that a percentage of advocates
want it
Restrictions on Challenging Eligibility of
Voters
• Age old argument between the 2
parties
• May become moot if Government takes
over VR
• Aimed more at the Poll Watchers than
at election administration but still may
have some impact
Eliminate or Restrict use of DREs
• Continued push to paper
• Requirements for DREs that paper
doesn’t meet either
• Software and security requirements
Expansion of No Excuse AB
• Not referred to as Vote By Mail but as
no excuse AB available to any voter
• Restrictions on states as to ID
requirements
Early Voting for all States
• Force all states to employ forms of
early voting
Standards for Purging Voters
• To assure voters are kept on the rolls
and “not wrongfully removed”
Prohibition of ID Requirements
• Establish Federal standards to override
states that have established ID
requirements
• According to new research
• 12% of voters in 23 “HAVA only” states
had to show Photo ID
• 80% of voters in the 3 states requiring
Photo ID had to show Photo ID
• Hispanics asked to show more ID than whites
or blacks in these states
Restoration of Rights for Felons
• The case is explained that this affects
African Americans far more than any
other segment of society.
• JEOLC has looked at the issue for more
than 10 years – Principal reaction of
EOs is if it becomes law, force courts to
issue a certificate of restoration of
rights so EOs know that rights are
restored.
Prohibition of Voter Caging
• Aimed principally at the “other” party
but also can affect how EOs use nonforwardable and non-returnable
documents
Shortening of Waiting Times for Voters
• According to recent survey by MIT, Caltech
and Utah, average wait time for voters (in
survey of 12,000 voters nationwide), avg
wait time was 13 minutes
• However, avg wait time reported by African
Americans was 29 minutes; whites 12
minutes, Hispanics 13 minutes and Asians 9
minutes on ED
• We don’t know for certain what causes
longer wait times for African Americans –
resources or unusually high numbers voting
in this election. We should know.
Paper Ballots At All Polling Places
• Some states are handling with Ballot
on Demand systems (BOD)
• For some it is dual processing in the
precincts – but DC does both and
makes it work
Poll Worker Training Programs
• Personal: This is best left to local
governments.
• Critics think that mandates and
training can improve poll worker
selection and performance.
• More narrowly, some think this can
apply to Federal workers only.
Creation of Grants for Software
• The grants are aimed principally for
academic and nonprofit institutions rather
than for manufacturers
• There are some who want government to
create software and then have it used
universally
• Potential dangers:
• eliminate voting systems companies
• Becomes easier to manipulate software
• Would tempt parties in power to stay in power
Equitable Allocation of Resources
• There are claims that African Americans
receive fewer resources than other voters
• Academic research on the subject is
muddled – some say yes, some say
no evidence that supports the allegation
• We need to know as a profession if it is so –
If yes, then we need to fix it – voting has to
be fair. If no, then we need to be able to
show real information.
Statewide Voter DB Interoperability
• This is one of the most confusing
issues:
• Republican Right and Democratic Left fear
a national database and allege that it will
be used for ill advised means
• Yet some of both parties want this to
evolve
• EAC has a grant out to National Academy
of Sciences on Statewide DBs, standards
and performance and data sharing
Is There a Better Way?
• Bandaid approach to elections
• What if we evolved elections into
something that works better as a
designed process rather than locking
pieces into law?
• What would it look like?
• What could be agreed to?
• Some ideas:
New Ideas
• Suppose government takes over VR (preferably at
State and Local levels)?
• Suppose we built on Vote Center concept for much
of America (may not work as well in less urban
settings). Then PV not much of an issue.
• Suppose we eliminated Early Voting and AB and
went to an election season of multiple days of
voting – As we are now, EOs running 3 elections at
once
• OR suppose we eliminated all polling sites and went
to national Vote by Mail
• Connie Schmidt has agreed to head up a new Task
Force on Future of the Elections Process and finding
new ideas