The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Jan. 25, 2023

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

Vermont Supreme Court – Ruling
VT Digger – Vermont Supreme Court rules Montpelier can allow noncitizen voting in local elections

Democracy Docket –  Vermont Supreme Court Allows Montpelier’s Noncitizen Voting Law To Remain in Place
BallotPedia – Laws permitting noncitizens to vote in the United States
Groups Taking Action:

Pew Trusts – Judge Strikes Down New York City Law Allowing Noncitizen Voters
Pew Trusts – Noncitizens Are Slowly Gaining Voting Rights
Center for Public Integrity – Cities want noncitizens to vote on local matters. GOP sees a target

Today’s Script:  (Variations occur with audio due to editing for time)

You’re listening to the American Democracy Minute, keeping YOUR government by and for the people.

We’re in Vermont today, not for the skiing, but for the democracy. The Vermont Supreme Court ruled last week that the city of Montpelier, the state capitol, could allow legal non-citizen residents to vote in LOCAL elections.

The Vermont Digger & Democracy Docket report that a 2018 change in the city’s charter allowing legal non-citizen residents to vote, passed by a 2 to 1 margin. The Vermont legislature confirmed the charter change, Governor Phil Scott then vetoed it, only to have the legislature override the veto. Court action ensued, brought by no less than the Republican National Committee and a handful of Vermont residents.

The Vermont high court unanimously upheld a lower court ruling, saying that while the state constitution prohibits non-citizens from voting in statewide elections, qualifying to vote in local elections can have different rules. The Montpelier clerks keep a separate qualified voter list for local elections.

Contrary to Montpelier’s change, a similar law in New York City was thrown out in June 2022 by a district court judge for not complying with the State of New York’s constitution. It’s not clear whether Montpelier’s rule, and a similar one in Winooski, VT, will be further challenged. In 2022, there were 16 municipalities which allowed legal non-citizen residents to vote, and 14 state constitutions could possibly allow it.

We have links to articles and groups taking action, at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. For the American Democracy Minute, I’m Brian Beihl.

The post Vermont High Court Allows Legal Non-Citizen Residents to Vote in Local Elections appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for November 30, 2022

Listen!

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

BallotPedia – Runoff elections
Washington Post – Runoff elections a relic of the Democratic South
National Conference of State Legislatures – Primary Runoff Elections

Democracy Docket – The Racist Roots of Runoffs in the South

Groups Taking Action:

 Open Primaries, Fair Vote, Fair Fight, Power Coalition for Equity & Justice

Today’s Script:  (Variations occur with audio due to editing for time)

You’re listening to the American Democracy Minute, keeping YOUR government by and for the people.

Yesterday, we reported on the two states which use runoffs in their elections, including Georgia, which has a U.S Senate runoff on December 6th, and Louisiana, for local elections & three ballot measures on December 10th. But did you know that runoffs are also used to determine party nominees in some states?

Ballotpedia reports that 10 states use top-two runoffs for primaries. Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Texas use runoff elections when no candidate has a clear 50% +1 vote majority to determine the party nominee going into the general election. In North Carolina, a candidate must receive 30% + 1 vote to win a primary, or face a runoff. In South Dakota, runoffs are used for partisan primaries for Congressional or gubernatorial seats when no candidate receives 35%, and in Vermont, runoffs are only used when a tie occurs.

According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, primary runoff systems developed in the south to encourage candidates to broaden their appeal so extreme candidates would be less likely to get elected. In Arkansas, runoffs were used to prevent members of the Ku Klux Klan from getting elected with small pluralities in lower turnout primaries.

Another form of runoff, called an “instant runoff” or “ranked choice voting,” is being implemented in some cities, counties & states around the country. More on that tomorrow.

We have links to articles and resources AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. For the American Democracy Minute, I’m Brian Beihl.

The post Runoff Elections Used in 10 States to Determine Party Nominees appeared first on American Democracy Minute.