The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Jan. 23, 2025

Today’s Script

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

While President Donald Trump’s Jan. 6th pardons and executive orders have dominated the news, state legislatures have been hard at work on both pro-voter and anti-voter legislation. Democracy legislation tracker Voting Rights Lab counts 432 election bills pending in 32 states, with 100 of those bills restricting voter access, while 205 expand it.

The Wisconsin Senate and Assembly have approved Senate Joint Resolution 2, which would put a proposed voter ID constitution amendment  before the voters in November.  A Pew Research survey found 81% of Americans support a requirement for government issued ID to vote, despite its impact on the poor, disabled and the elderly. 

A New York Senate committee moved three pro-voter bills forward, authorizing county voting centers in addition to local precincts, and requiring the state to join the Electronic Registration Information Center, or ERIC, to help keep its voter rolls clean.  Another bill would criminalize spreading misleading election information intended to suppress the vote.

An Arizona Senate committee endorsed SB 1011, making changes to mail-in early voting rules, including when and where ballots may be returned.   The Virginia House approved a constitutional amendment to automatically restore rights to people formerly incarcerated for felonies.  Governor Glenn Younkin had previously ordered rights restoration on a case-by-case basis only.

We’ll be following all these bills in the months to come.

Find a link to the Voting Rights Lab tracker at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl. 

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

Voting Rights Lab – The Markup: January 21, 2025

Voting Rights Lab –  Bill Tracking Search (Registration required)
Votebeat Wisconsin – Wisconsin voters to decide whether to put photo ID requirement in constitution
Albany News 10 – Senate majority pushes legislative package with voting, election reform
Arizona Mirror – More AZ counties back Florida-style early ballot changes backed by Republicans
Virginia Mercury – Historic push for constitutional protections in Virginia gains momentum

Groups Taking Action:
Disability Rights Wisconsin, League of Women Voters NY, Arizona Democracy Resource Center

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

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

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#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #VotingRights #VoterID #EarlyVoting #VotebyMail

The post While We Were Distracted with DC Discord, States Advance New Voting Regulations appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Dec. 6, 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.

Before a new Democratic governor takes office in January and it loses its supermajority, the GOP-controlled North Carolina legislature used a hurricane relief bill to strip power from the governor and attorney general.  The draconian changes hinge on a pending veto override vote in the state House.

The bare-knuckle bill was short on hurricane relief, and long on keeping power out of the hands of Democrats.  Earlier this year, a 2023 bill attempting to strip the power of the governor to appoint county election boards was struck down by the state’s court of appeals.   Now, Senate Bill 382 tries to remove that power by shifting it to the incoming state auditor, a Republican. 

In his veto message, current Governor Roy Cooper called the bill “a sham” and unconstitutional, and Democrats have declared it an outrageous power grab. The bill also includes a proposed constitutional amendment requiring voter ID for mail-in ballots, and bans the attorney general from opposing the legislature in court.  

The state senate voted December 2nd to override Cooper’s veto, and the House vote is pending.  North Carolina Newsline reports that it’s unclear whether Republicans have the vote in the House to override, with three House GOP lawmakers unhappy with inadequate hurricane relief funding, having voted against the original bill.  

We have the text of the bill and great local reporting linked at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

NC General Assembly – SENATE BILL 382: Disaster Relief-3/Budget/Various Law Changes.

Courthouse News Service – North Carolina Republicans blasted for using lame-duck session to wrest control of government
Gov. Roy Cooper – Statement on his veto of SB382
NC Newsline – Despite protests, NC Senate overrides Cooper’s veto of bill that shifts executive power
WUNC – Lame-duck NC Senate approves constitutional amendment ballot measures alongside veto override
WRAL – Amid protests, Senate overrides Cooper’s veto of bill stripping power from governor, other Democratic officials
The News & Observer – Will NC Republicans have the votes to override Cooper’s veto of powers-stripping bill?

Groups Taking Action:

Democracy North Carolina, League of Women Voters NC, Common Cause NC

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 #NorthCarolina #PowerGrab #SB382

The post Before it Loses its Supermajority, the North Carolina Legislature Strips Election Powers from Its Governor, Bans AG from Opposing the Legislature.  Will the House Override the Veto? appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Oct. 31, 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.

Time has run out for mailing a mail-in or absentee ballot, but if it’s already mailed, there are tools for tracking its status.  If it hasn’t been mailed, officials advise delivering it to an election office or official ballot drop box instead.

Internal U.S. Postal Service rules require postal employees to expedite official ballot mail.  Since 2020 though, consolidation of sorting centers has delayed first class mail, particularly in rural areas, and hurricane damage has posed other delivery challenges. 

In Georgia, where a record 3.2 million citizens voted early in person or by mail, election officials now advise absentee or mail ballots be brought to the local election office.   Georgia’s restrictive election law won’t count your ballot after election day, even if it’s properly postmarked.

Eighteen states allow ballots postmarked by election day to be counted after election day.  But the Kansas Secretary of State recently complained to the USPS that in the state’s primary, over 1,000 ballots were delivered without a postmark, and couldn’t be counted under Kansas law.

Five states, Arkansas, Connecticut, Louisiana, North Dakota and Vermont, require hand-delivered ballots BEFORE election day, though some of those states allow delivery to the precinct before close or election day. 

Find links to Vote.org’s resources on state deadlines and ballot tracking tools at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
U.S. Postal Service – U.S. Postal Service is Ready to Deliver the Nation’s Election Mail
U.S. Postal Service – Explainer on How the USPS Handles Election Mail
Vote.org – Track Your Ballot or Ballot Application
National Conference of State Legislatures – Receipt and Postmark Deadlines for Absentee/Mail Ballots
Movement Advancement Project – Map of States with Ballot Tracking
U.S. Vote Foundation – Where’s my Ballot? Check your State’s Ballot Tracker.

Fox 5 Atlanta – Georgians urged to drop off mail-in ballots as early voting continues breaking records
Associated Press – Kansas Secretary of State sends letter with concerns over mailed ballots
Spotlight PA – Elections 101: Why some Pa. counties have mail ballot drop boxes and others don’t

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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#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #ProtectElections #MailBallots #DropBoxes #USPS

The post If Your Mail-In or Absentee Ballot is in the Mail, Here’s How to Track It.  If it’s Not, Hand Delivery to Your Election Office or Drop Box is a Safer Bet.  appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

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

We have important updates for three consequential voting rights cases we’ve been following in Pennsylvania, Nevada and Georgia, just a week before the November 2024 election. 

October 28th, the Republican National Committee appealed a Pennsylvania Supreme Court decision allowing voters whose mail ballot secrecy envelopes were missing or unsealed, to vote by provisional ballot instead. The RNC asked the U.S. Supreme Court for an emergency ruling, claiming Pennsylvania’s high court overstepped the legislature’s authority over election law.  The U.S. Supreme Court has not yet responded.

The Nevada Independent reports that Oct. 28th, the state supreme court upheld a ruling that mail-in ballots without postmarks received within three days after election day must be counted.   Republicans appealed the decision, arguing the lower court misread the law.  The majority said the appeal was too close to the election, and wrote:  “If a voter properly and timely casts their vote by mailing their ballot before or on the day of the election, and through a post office omission the ballot is not postmarked, it would go against public policy to discount that properly cast vote.”  

The Georgia Supreme Court October 22nd denied a Republican appeal to restore a Georgia state election board rule allowing county election board members to make a “reasonable inquiry” and obstruct certifying the election. The rule will NOT be in effect November 5th.

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

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

Pennsylvania Spotlight/AP – Republicans ask U.S. Supreme Court to block counting of some provisional ballots in Pa.
U.S. Supreme Court – Republican National Committee, et al., Applicants v. Faith Genser, et al.

ScotusBlog – Republicans ask Supreme Court to block decision to count Pennsylvania provisional ballots
Nevada Independent – Nevada Supreme Court rules non-postmarked ballots can be counted within 3 days of election
Georgia Recorder – Georgia Supreme Court delays ruling on controversial election board rules until after Nov. 5

Groups Taking Action:

ACLU PA,  PA Conference of the NAACP, Fair Fight Action, ACLU GA,  Common Cause GA, Nevada Alliance for Retired Americans

Check Your Voter Registration:

• U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Register And Vote in Your State
• 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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#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #VotingRights #MailInBallots #Pennsylvania #Georgia #Nevada

The post Updates on Important Pennsylvania, Nevada and Georgia Voting Rights Decisions and Appeals Just Days Before the Election appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

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

Two updates on stories we’ve covered recently in Pennsylvania, where its high court invalidated ballots with missing or inaccurate dates, and Alaska, where the Alaska Native population is organizing against a repeal of open primaries and ranked choice voting.

Sept. 13th, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s highest court overturned an Aug. 30th unanimous decision by the lower Commonwealth Court that mail-in ballots lacking a date or an invalid date must be counted.   The Republican National Committee and state Republicans appealed, and the Supreme Court booted the case not on the merits, but on a technicality.  

In 2022, 8,500 voters’ ballots were affected, and democracy groups are asking for an immediate hearing on the merits.   As a result of the ruling, Pennsylvanians will need to be VERY careful when filling out their mail-in ballots to make sure their vote will count.

The Alaska Federation of Natives is organizing to defeat Measure 2, a far-right -backed repeal of the state’s ranked choice voting and single ballot open primary system.  Bolts Magazine reports that with Alaska’s long voter suppression history of Natives, RCV and open primaries give Native candidates a chance to compete.  Mary Petola became the first Native Alaskan elected to Congress, in 2022.  The GOP blames the loss on the use of ranked choice voting.  

We have links to more on both stories at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org  I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
American Democracy Minute – Earlier Commonwealth Court Decision
Supreme Court of PA – Decision on Missing and Inaccurate Dates

Spotlight PA/Votebeat – High court voids ruling on mail ballots missing handwritten dates
American Democracy Minute – Will Alaska Keep Its Open Primaries and Ranked Choice Voting?  An Upcoming Anti-RCV Ballot Initiative is a Critical Test
Bolts Magazine – Native Leaders Organize to Defend Alaska’s Ranked Choice Voting System

Groups Taking Action:

ACLU PA,  PA Conference of the NAACP, Common Cause PA, Black Political Empowerment Project, ,  League of Women Voters PA,   Alaska Federation of Natives

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

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

#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #AlaskaNews #PennsylvaniaNews #MailBallots #RCV

The post Pennsylvania Won’t Count Undated Mail Ballots After All; Alaska Natives Organizing to Retain Ranked Choice Voting appeared first on American Democracy Minute.