The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for July 12, 2024
Today’s Script
(Variations occur with audio due to editing for time. Today’s Links below the script)
You’re listening to the American Democracy Minute, keeping YOUR government by and for the people.
Our last installment for “Why People Don’t Vote Week” discusses what solutions are being proposed to encourage eligible citizens to register and vote.
The Center for American Progress outlined reforms which would encourage registration and voting. They include Automatic Voter Registration, to encourage registration at the DMV when obtaining a license or car registration. Oregon registered 219,000 new voters by AVR before the 2018 midterm and 47% of them voted.
Online voter registration, which includes submitting identification and other documents electronically, has eased the hassle for working people to register. A study in Georgia found that 71% of online registrants turned out to vote, higher than in person or mail registration.
Preregistering 16 & 17 year olds is effective in getting younger voters engaged. They can’t vote until age 18, but often schools can encourage future voting when coupled with civics education. Florida saw a 4.7% jump in youth voting as a result.
Early voting and voting by mail helps all manners of people to vote, providing flexibility in schedules for parents and working citizens. In the last few weeks, Georgia has shattered its early voting records.
What are your options for registering and voting? Contact your city or county election office or website for details. Do it now, for you, your state and your county.
Articles and links to groups taking action are at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org
For the American Democracy Minute, I’m Brian Beihl.
Today’s Links
Articles:
Center for American Progress – Increasing Voter Participation in America
National Conference of State Legislatures- Automatic Voter Registration
National Conference of State Legislatures- Online Voter Registration
National Affairs- Does High Voter Turnout Help One Party?
Groups Taking Action:
Movement Voter Project, Voto Latino, Black Voters Matter, Vote.org, When We All Vote, Vote411
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