The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Nov. 25, 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.

With a razor-thin statewide margin of 664 votes, ranked choice voting and open primaries weathered a repeal challenge in Alaska, one of the few democracy reforms to survive the 2024 Presidential election cycle.  

We reported in 2022 that over 80% of Alaska voters found ranked choice voting easy to use, and that the open primary system offered many more candidate choices.   It also implemented a “Top 4” Congressional race, where the top four vote-getters advance to the general election, again, in an effort to offer more choice to voters.  Republicans blamed the system for the election of Democratic Congresswoman Mary Peltola, who coincidentally lost her seat November 5th.

The right wing ballot measure to repeal it, marred by questionable funding and signature-gathering practices, was upheld by the Alaska Supreme Court.  The group formed to repeal it, Alaskans for Honest Elections, was fined $94,000 in June for violating the state’s dark money disclosure laws, after a nonprofit church organization contributed $90,000.  

Rural votes in Alaska take weeks to count, and it wasn’t until Nov. 20th that the race was called, 50.10% against the repeal, and 49.90% for it.  With the national GOP opposed to RCV and with such a close vote, expect future challenges.  Still don’t think your vote matters?    

We have links to more and the groups taking action at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
BallotPedia – Alaska Ballot Measure 2, Repeal Top-Four Ranked-Choice Voting Initiative (2024)

Alaska Beacon – Alaska chooses to keep ranked choice voting, Begich defeats Peltola, unofficial results show
Alaska Beacon – Alaska Supreme Court upholds ranked choice repeal initiative, now bound for November vote
BallotPedia – Ballot Measure Which Established Alaska’s Top-Four Ranked-Choice Voting and Campaign Finance Laws Initiative (2020)
American Democracy Minute – Fines Upheld for Alaska Pastor Using His Church Organization to Funnel ‘Free Speech’ Money to Political Groups Trying Repeal Ranked Choice Voting
Alaska Division of Elections – Ranked Choice Voting, Explained

Groups Taking Action:

Alaskans for Better Elections, Represent.Us, Open Primaries

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Register And Vote in Your State

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#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #Alaska #OpenPrimaries #RankedChoiceVoting

The post Alaska’s Ranked Choice Voting and ‘Top 4’ Open Primaries Survive Repeal Referendum – By a Whisker appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Nov. 8th, 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.

State and federal election officials termed most problems encountered in the Nov. 5th Presidential election as routine, with quickly discredited bomb threats and ballot shortages among the worst issues of the day.

The hoax bomb threats, which the FBI quickly traced to a Russian domain, briefly affected some precincts in Georgia, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Michigan and Wisconsin.  Most locations were operational in less than an hour.   In Fulton County, Georgia, 32 precincts received threats, according to the Associated Press.   

In Cambria County, Pennsylvania, a ballot printing issue prevented reading by the optical scanners, according to the New York Post.  Working ballots arrived by 1:15 pm and were used for the remainder of the day.   Polling hours were extended due to the problem.

In Boston, WBUR reports that the Massachusetts Secretary of State is investigating ballot shortages in five to ten precincts.  The state had provided adequate ballots, but apparently city election officials didn’t distribute all that was allocated to the precincts and didn’t answer the phone when calls came in for more.   

In Milwaukee, access panels to power and USB ports on some optical ballot readers were unsecured when over 30,000 of the over 106,000 absentee ballots were tabulated, according to Votebeat.  The panels were secured, the machines reset, and the affected ballots were rerun.  

We’ve linked to the local reporting at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl. 

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency – Statement from CISA Director Easterly on the Security of the 2024 Elections
FBI – FBI Statement on Bomb Threats to Polling Locations

Reuters – Hoax bomb threats linked to Russia target polling places in battleground states, FBI says

New York Post – Here’s the real culprit of the massive Election Day problems in Cambria County, Pennsylvania
WBUR – State opens investigation into Boston’s ballot shortages on Election Day
Votebeat WI – Milwaukee starts over with counting of absentee ballots, after open locks are discovered on tabulators

Check Your Voter Registration:

• U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Register And Vote in Your State
• USA Vote Foundation – Registration, Eligibility, State Election Office Links
• Vote.Gov – Register to Vote in Your State
• Vote.Org – Check Your Registration to Vote
  
  

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Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

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Are you a radio station?  Find our broadcast files at Pacifica Radio Network’s Audioport and PRX

#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #ElectionProblems #BostonNews #GeorgiaNews #PennsylvaniaNews #WisconsinNews

The post Hoax Bomb Threats, Ballot Shortages, and Unlocked Access Panels Appear to be the Worst of the 2024 Election Problems appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Nov. 5, 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.

Election night is unlikely to be “results night”.  Irresponsible candidates may exploit an extended time to declare a winner and say there’s something illicit about the process.  In fact, it’s our patriotic friends and neighbors who serve as poll workers, taking the time needed to get it right.  

Mail-in ballots require extra steps for election officials, as the ballots are checked-in, outer envelopes opened, and identification documents verified. During 2020, folds in mail ballots slowed the tabulation process.  New rules streamlined processing in some states, allowing mail ballots to be processed before election day.  But in some state more layers of ID have been added, and counting can’t take place until election day.

There are also likely to be more challenges to voter eligibility from partisan poll watchers, a voter suppression tactic expanded by some state legislatures under the guise of “election integrity.”  Addressing challenges consumes election officials’ time.

Close races may also trigger an automatic recount, or a candidate may request a recount.  These generally take place after election night, but delay the results, often for days. Such recounts generally start with a second run through a tabulator, then a hand count, if necessary.  

We need to give the checks and balances of our system the time to work, supported by our heroic poll workers.  Find out more at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
Reuters – Explainer: Why we may not know the winner of the US presidential election on Nov. 5

538.com – When Will We Know 2024 Election Results?
The Hill – When will we know the results of the presidential election?
CNN – How news outlets are bracing for an election night cliffhanger
Washington State Standard – Final results may lag in deadlocked presidential contest, anxious election officials warn
Protect Democracy – The 2024 Vote Count:  What to Expect

Groups Taking Action:
Protect Democracy, Common Cause, Election Official Legal Defense Fund, Public Citizen

Check Your Voter Registration:

• U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Register And Vote in Your State
• USA Vote Foundation – Registration, Eligibility, State Election Office Links
• Vote.Gov – Register to Vote in Your State
• Vote.Org – Check Your Registration to Vote
  
  

Please follow us on Facebook and SHARE!  

Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

Want ADM sent to your email?  Sign up here!

Are you a radio station?  Find our broadcast files at Pacifica Radio Network’s Audioport and PRX

#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #ElectionNight #ElectionResults #ProtectElections

The post Close Races, New Rules, Mail-in Ballots and Election Deniers Mean Election Night is Not Likely to Be Results Night appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Oct. 17, 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.

In two cases with national implications, a Fulton County Superior Court Judge temporarily blocked implementation of new Georgia Election Board rules which appeared designed to delay the certification of the 2024 Presidential election.  

The Georgia Election Board approved controversial new rules – within 90 days of the election – allowing individual members of county election boards to conduct a “reasonable inquiry” before certifying an election.   Another rule approved only September 18th requires a hand count of paper ballots into stacks of 50 to compare with the machine count total.    

Either of the rules could throw the election process into chaos and litigation, and delay the outcome, according to democracy advocates.  Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger called the hand counting rule “misguided.” 

Judge Robert McBurney found both rules were decided too close to the election, not leaving enough time to train elections workers, and eroding voter confidence.   “Intervenors have further demonstrated how the 11th-and-one-half hour implementation of the Hand Count Rule will make this coming election inefficient and non-uniform . . .” he said. 

In the “reasonable inquiry” case, McBurney wrote that under Georgia law, no election superintendent may refuse to certify or abstain from certifying election results under any circumstance.  The rulings are in effect for the 2024 election, and other challenges are pending.  We have more at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
Georgia Recorder – Judge ponders Cobb County challenge to Georgia election board rules OK’d close to start of voting

Fulton County Superior Court – (Hand Counting Case) COBB COUNTY BOARD OF ELECTIONS AND REGISTRATION et al., v. STATE ELECTION BOARD
Georgia Recorder – Fulton judge says Georgia law requires county election officials to certify results
ABC News – Georgia judge blocks ballot counting rule and says county officials must certify election results
Campaign Legal Center – Can Georgia’s Election Board Refuse to Certify Results? The Law Says No

Groups Taking Action:

League of Women Voters GA, Protect Democracy, Brennan Center for Justice

Check Your Voter Registration:

• U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Register And Vote in Your State
• USA Vote Foundation – Registration, Eligibility, State Election Office Links
• Vote.Gov – Register to Vote in Your State
• Vote.Org – Check Your Registration to Vote
  
  

Please follow us on Facebook and SHARE!  

Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

Want ADM sent to your email?  Sign up here!

Are you a radio station?  Find our broadcast files at Pacifica Radio Network’s Audioport and PRX

#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #ProtectElections #Georgia #Certification 

The post In Case with 2024 Presidential Election Implications, Georgia Judge Blocks Controversial State Election Board Rules for Hand Counting & Certification appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Sept. 30, 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.

The FCC levied a $6 Million dollar fine Sept. 26th for an A-I deep fake robocall in January’s NH Presidential Primary, and on the eve of a civil trial, conservative outlet Newsmax settled a lawsuit with voting machine maker Smartmatic. 

In February, we reported on a robocall using an A-I generated voice of President Joe Biden, urging citizens not to vote in the New Hampshire Presidential Primary.  After a federal and state investigation, the FCC fined Steve Kramer, the political consultant allegedly behind the scheme, $6 Million dollars. A separate $1 Million dollar fine was levied on Lingo Telecom in August.  Kramer also faces felony charges in New Hampshire.

Just days before a civil trial was to begin, conservative outlet Newsmax settled with optical ballot machine maker Smartmatic, September 26th.  Like Dominion Voting Systems, Smartmatic’s machines were falsely implicated in a 2020 voter fraud conspiracy theory, driven by former President Trump’s false claims about the election.  Those claims were widely aired on Newsmax, Fox News and other outlets. No settlement terms were disclosed.

Fox News and Fox Corporation, which settled with Dominion Voting Systems for $787 Million dollars, also faces a $2.7 Billion dollar suit by Smartmatic, a case likely to be heard in 2025.   Fox says it is protected by the First Amendment.

We have more on both of these stories at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

American Democracy Minute – Suspected Senders Identified in AI-Generated Robo Calls Faking Joe Biden’s Voice Before New Hampshire’s Presidential Primary
Federal Communications Commission – FCC FINES MAN BEHIND ELECTION INTERFERENCE SCHEME $6
MILLION FOR SENDING ILLEGAL ROBOCALLS THAT USED
DEEPFAKE GENERATIVE AI TECHNOLOGY
InDepthNH – Consultant Fined $6M for NH Robo Calls Imitating Biden Before January Primary
CNN – Fox board members subpoenaed in Smartmatic’s defamation lawsuit over 2020 election lies

NPR – Voting-tech company settles with right-wing network over false election claims
The Guardian – Newsmax and Smartmatic settle 2020 US election defamation lawsuit
American Democracy Minute – (2023) Fox News Troubles Not Over Yet, With More Potentially Embarrassing Lawsuits Pending

Check Your Voter Registration:

• U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Register And Vote in Your State
• USA Vote Foundation – Registration, Eligibility, State Election Office Links
• Vote.Gov – Register to Vote in Your State
• Vote.Org – Check Your Registration to Vote
  
  

Please follow us on Facebook and Twitter and SHARE!  

Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

Want ADM sent to your email?  Sign up here!

Are you a radio station?  Find our broadcast files at Pacifica Radio Network’s Audioport and PRX

#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #FoxNews #Smartmatic #Newsmax #BigLie

The post FCC Fines Man Allegedly Behind NH Primary AI Robocall $6 Million; Newsmax Settles with Smartmatic Over Airing 2020 Voting Machine Conspiracy Theories appeared first on American Democracy Minute.