The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Feb. 7, 2025

Today’s Script

(Variations occur with audio due to editing for time. Today’s Links below the script)

A New Hampshire Senate bill, just killed in committee, would have moved the state’s four presidential electoral votes to a “Winner by District” system, from “Winner Take All”.  Nebraska, the only state besides Maine which apportions its electoral votes by district, is trying to end it.

The National Conference of State Legislatures defines a Winner Take All system as one where the winning candidate’s party, no matter the margin of victory, gets all of the electoral votes.   

Currently in Nebraska, which has 5 electoral votes,  and Maine, which has 4, one electoral vote is awarded for each Congressional district a candidate wins, and the candidate who wins the popular vote statewide gets the rest.  

New Hampshire is currently a winner-take-all state, with two Congressional Districts.  SB11 would have adopted the Nebraska and Maine model, likely in anticipation of gerrymandering a guaranteed GOP congressional district.  But February 5th, the Senate Election and Municipal Affairs committee recommended that it be killed in an upcoming full Senate vote.  

The AP reports that Nebraska’s GOP is irritated that candidates Obama, Biden and Harris won an electoral vote from greater Omaha’s Congressional District 2. Another legislative attempt to end it appears doomed to fail by filibuster, so state Republicans are preparing a ballot measure instead, hoping the voters will change what the legislature could not. 

We have local reporting and more at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.   I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

National Conference of State Legislators – The Electoral College
National Archives – Distribution of Electoral Votes
New Hampshire Bulletin – Some push for end to New Hampshire ‘winner take all’ Electoral College allocations
American Democracy Minute – GOP-Controlled NH Legislature Proposes Proportional Presidential Electoral Votes. Will Gerrymandered Congressional Districts Follow?

NH General Court – SB 11 , relative to the allocation of electoral college votes
Nebraska Examiner – Lawmaker proposes ‘backup’ winner-take-all measure for Nebraska presidential electors
AP – The GOP keeps failing to make Nebraska a winner-take-all state. Now it might ask voters to do it

Groups Taking Action:

National Popular Vote, Stand Up America, FairVote, Common Cause US

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

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

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Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

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#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #ElectoralCollege #NationalPopularVote #NebraskaNews #NHNews

The post Nebraska & New Hampshire Wrestle with “Winner Take All” and “Winner by District” Presidential Electoral Vote Systems appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Jan. 9, 2025

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.

Legislation unveiled Monday by the New Hampshire Senate would change the state’s four Presidential electoral votes from “winner take all” to “proportional,” based on which party wins its two Congressional districts. Gerrymander the districts, and you guarantee more votes for your Presidential candidate. 

Senate Bill 11 would have New Hampshire join Maine and Nebraska as the only states which have proportional electoral votes, and would apportion them based on which party wins Congressional district 1 or 2.   

In November, the state’s Congressional seats went to Democrats reps Chris Pappas, and newcomer Maggie Goodlander, yet the state house, senate, governorship, and governor’s executive council all went red, in large part to gerrymandered voting districts.  Gerrymandered, except the districts for Congress.

A 2022 proposal by the NH House Election Law Committee radically gerrymandered the districts, guaranteeing the District 1 congressional seat for Republicans. So radical, in fact, that Republican Governor and possible Presidential candidate Chris Sununu surprised his own party by vetoing the map, and proposing his own competitive map similar to that of previous decades.

New Hampshire’s incoming governor, former U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte, may not have such competitive compulsions.  With a Republican House & Senate behind her, a gerrymandered Congressional district could be a two-fer for Republicans, both in New Hampshire and in the Presidential race. 

We have more at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl.

To view the whole script of today’s report, please go to our website.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

National Archives – Distribution of Electoral Votes
New Hampshire Legislature – Senate Bill 11
WMUR – Senate Republicans propose bill to reallocate New Hampshire’s electoral votes
New Hampshire Bulletin – 2022 House Republicans stand by proposed overhaul of state’s congressional districts
New Hampshire Bulletin – (2022) Sununu says he will veto congressional district maps
 
Groups Taking Action:

Open Democracy Map-a-Thon Project, League of Women Voters NH, NH Campaign for Voting Rights,  ACLU NH

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

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

Please follow us on Facebook and Bluesky Social, 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 #NationalPopularVote #ProportionalRepresentation #ElectoralCollege #NH #603 #NHPolitics

The post GOP-Controlled NH Legislature Proposes Proportional Presidential Electoral Votes. Will Gerrymandered Congressional Districts Follow? appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Jan. 8, 2025

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 2024 election was certified January 6th by Congress with no objections, accusations of fraud, or violent mobs.  Why was it, well, blissfully boring? 

Vice President Kamala Harris handed each state’s electoral college letters of certification to “tellers,” who then read them out loud. When complete, the total was announced, and Trump declared the winner.  The whole process took less than 30 minutes. 

What changed?  The Electoral Count Reform Act was implemented, making it harder for Congress to derail certification. Election rules were tightened in many states, but in battleground Michigan, where voter access was dramatically expanded over GOP objections and litigation, Trump won. After losing in 2020, he claimed widespread voter fraud in Detroit.

Hand counting activists have also been curiously silent. Were the voting machines different this time?  Electronic ballot tabulators, the target of conspiracy theories and multi-million dollar lawsuits, are still on the job and recognized as far more accurate and less costly than hand counting.   

What about the legions of undocumented immigrants Trump claimed last October would vote illegally? There was no widespread evidence of noncitizen voting in this or any other U.S. election.   

Other Trump not inciting his followers with disinformation and than no criminal conspiracy to overthrow the results, not much did change. Our 2024 election was secured by many of the same heroic election officials doing the blissfully boring work of democracy.  We have more at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl. 

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
American Democracy Minute – It May Be Bumpy, But Most Democracy Experts Think the Electoral Count Reform Act Will Help Protect the Election
NPR – Under the shadow of the Jan. 6, 2021 riot, Congress certifies the 2024 election
The Guardian – Kamala Harris says ‘America’s democracy stood’, after certifying Trump’s election victory – as it happened
Associated Press – Highlights from the certification of Trump’s 2024 presidential election
Univ. of Washington Center for an Informed Public – What to expect when we’re electing: A guide to voting machine rumors
CBS News – Trump falsely claims noncitizen voter fraud is widespread. Here are 5 facts.

Brennan Center for Justice – The Damage from Conspiracy Theories About Noncitizen Voting

Groups Taking Action:

Protect Democracy,  Campaign Legal Center, League of Women Voters US, Public Citizen

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

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

Please follow us on Facebook and Bluesky Social, 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 #ElectionCertification #ProtectDemocracy #2024Election

The post Unlike the 2020 Election, 2024’s Election Was Certified without Violence, Sham Audits or Criminal Conspiracies.  How Come? appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Dec. 19, 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 official meeting rooms around the country, 538 electors for the 2024 Presidential election met December 17th to cast their vote on behalf of their state’s results.  Thirteen of those Electoral College electors are accused 2020 fake electors, some of whom still face prosecution. 

Trump campaign associates coordinated a plot in seven battleground states to submit a fraudulent slate of Republican electors.  The plot failed when Vice President Mike Pence refused to participate and certified the results. 

The alleged “fake electors” in Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Nevada, New Mexico, Georgia and Arizona were subject to investigations by state officials, the January 6th Committee, and the Special Counsel.  Fake electors in Michigan, Georgia, and Arizona still face trial. Nevada prosecutors just refiled charges Dec.12th.  No charges were brought in New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. 

Stunningly, 13 of those electors were renominated by their state Republican parties as electors in 2024.  Six of the 15 awaiting trial for forgery in Michigan were renominated. Six Nevada electors were re-indicted last week on forgery charges, two of whom were renominated, including Jesse Law and state GOP chair Michael McDonald.  

Still unclear is whether Trump will include the fake electors in his promised pardons for those accused and convicted for the January 6th insurrection.  

We have more at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (C.R.E.W) – The cases against fake electors and where they stand
LawFare – Where the Fake Electors Cases Stand in State Court
Michigan Public – “Vindication” as Trump’s “fake electors” serve as real ’24 electors
NPR – ‘Fake electors’ from 2020 are casting 2024 votes for Trump while facing felony charges

ABC News – 13 accused of being ‘fake electors’ cast Electoral College votes for Trump
Wisconsin Politics – Trump vows to eliminate Education Department, pardon Jan. 6 convicts during Mosinee rally
CNN – Recordings, emails show how Trump team flew fake elector ballots to DC in final push to overturn 2020 election
WSAZ – January 6th defendants, “fake electors” hope President-elect Trump keeps his word on pardons

Groups Taking Action:
C.R.E.W.,  LawForward

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

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

Please follow us on Facebook and Bluesky Social, 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 #January6th #FakeElectors

The post Among 2024 Electoral College Presidential Electors Were 13 Alleged 2020 Fake Electors, Some of Whom Await Trial on Fraud Charges appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Oct. 29, 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 three reports focused on the likely plans for bad actors to subvert the election.  Thankfully, Congress passed the Electoral Count Reform Act of 2022, which most experts believe will prevail. How does it work?

The ECRA sets up federal court guidelines for expedited election challenges, including emergency U.S. Supreme Court action.  That’s important, because the ECRA also sets hard deadlines for states to submit their certification and slate of electors, limiting litigation intended to delay the process. 

It also prohibits a state legislature from changing the set of electors are chosen AFTER the election, a tactic bad actors proposed in 2020.  It clarifies that only a governor or designated “executive” are allowed to transmit the “certificate of ascertainment” and list of electors, avoiding another fake elector scheme.  The transmission goes directly to Congress six days before the electors convene, which must occur by the “the first Tuesday after the second Wednesday in December.”  This election, that’s December 17th, 2024.

Once the process reaches Congress, the ECRA raises the threshold to object to a state’s certification from one senator and one representative, to one-fifth of each body, making it harder to second-guess a state’s certification and obstruct the proceedings.  And it clarifies the role of the Vice President as procedural, not the final word on state certifications or electors.

We have more on the Electoral Count Reform Act at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl. 

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

Protect Democracy – Understanding the Electoral Count Reform Act of 2022

Brennan Center for Justice – How Electoral Votes Are Counted for the Presidential Election
Campaign Legal Center – Updating the Electoral Count Act to Protect the Will of the People in Presidential Election
The Fulcrum – Understanding the Electoral Count Reform Act
National Constitution Center – Democracy Checkup: Preparing for the 2024 Election

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

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

#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #ProtectElections #ElectoralCountReformAct #ECRA

The post It May Be Bumpy, But Most Democracy Experts Think the Electoral Count Reform Act Will Help Protect the Election appeared first on American Democracy Minute.