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

Following up our report on states which have passed a voting rights act comes an authorization to collect signatures for the Ohio Voters Bill of Rights, protecting voters from suppression tactics, and implementing reforms like automatic voter registration.  The State of Ohio tried to reject it.

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost twice objected to the title of the measure, tactically delaying the measure beginning in early 2024 so it couldn’t make the November ballot.  October 30th, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled that the AG did NOT have the authority to reject it on the basis of its title.  Then in mid-November, the Ohio Ballot Board, headed by Secretary of State Frank LaRose, approved the measure to collect signatures, AFTER complaining about its content.  

If passed, the constitutional measure, similar to Michigan’s 2022 initiative, would enshrine Ohio voters’ right to vote: Early in person, by mail or on election day, and to do so without intimidation or harassment. It allows voter registration online, at the DMV, or on election day.  It gives municipalities flexibility to expand polling locations and use drop boxes, and directs that state government and the courts should defer to supporting voters’ rights. 

Given the state’s derailment of November’s citizen-led redistricting commission, expect more state-sponsored shenanigans before voters weigh in.  

We have the full text of the Ohio Voters Bill of Rights at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
Ohio Attorney General – Full Text of the Ohio Voters Bill of Rights
State of Ohio – Summary – Ohio Voters Bill of Rights
Court News Ohio – Attorney General Not Authorized To Review Proposed Amendment Titles

Ohio Supreme Court – Decision in Dudley v. Yost

Ohio Capital Journal – Ballot board clears Ohio Voters Bill of Rights, organizers can begin collecting signatures

Groups Taking Action:

Ohio Voters Rights Coalition, Ohio Organizing Collaborative, Ohio Unity Coalition, Ohio NAACP 

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

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

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#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #Ohio #VRA #OHVotersBillofRights #VotingRights

The post Ohio Voters Bill of Rights Ballot Measure Finally Authorized to Collect Signatures appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for April 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.

Washington state voters can breathe easier, after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear a challenge to the Washington Voting Rights Act, passed in response to the stripping Voting Rights Act protections by the same court in Shelby v. Holder.

In April 2023, the Washington State legislature passed HB1048, improving an earlier 2018 version of the Washington Voting Rights Act. The pro-voter reform was challenged by a GOP county commissioner, but was later upheld by the Washington Supreme Court. It was then taken to the U.S. Supreme Court which, April 15th, refused to hear the case.   

The commissioner argued that the law violated the state and federal constitutions when courts used it to change the election of Franklin county commissioners from at-large to using single-commissioner districts. The change allows Franklin County’s Hispanic voters to elect the candidate of their choice, rather than having their vote diluted countywide. 

HB 1048 stipulates, QUOTE “State and local laws related to the right to vote must be construed liberally in favor of protecting the right to vote and ensuring that all voters have equitable access to register and participate in elections.”   

While waiting for the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act to pass Congress, Connecticut, New York, California, Oregon, and Virginia have adopted similar state VRA laws, and Minnesota is considering one.   

We have more on these state voting rights acts at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
Brennan Center for Justice – State Supreme Court Upholds Washington State’s Voting Rights Act; Brennan Center Reacts
Washington State Legislature – Text of the Washington Voting Rights Act
Democracy Docket – US Supreme Court Will Not Review GOP Challenge To Washington’s State-Level Voting Rights Act
Center for American Progress – The Protection of Voting Rights Requires State Action
NAACP Legal Defense Fund – Reflecting on the Voting Rights Landscape a Decade After Shelby County v. Holder

Connecticut Legislature – AN ACT CONCERNING STATE VOTING RIGHTS IN RECOGNITION
OF JOHN R. LEWIS.
CalMatters – California’s high court upholds voting rights law
KARE – Minnesota Senate panel okays voting rights bill

Groups Taking Action:
Washington Voting Justice Coalition, League of Women Voters WA, Native Vote WA,  Native American Rights Fund, ACLU WA

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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 #VotingRightsAct #WashingtonState #VotingRights #JohnLewisAct
#FreedomtoVote

The post U.S. Supreme Court Refuses to Hear Washington State Case Challenging the Washington Voting Rights Act appeared first on American Democracy Minute.