Voting

July 3, 2007 -- OLYMPIA – Washington Governor Chris Gregoire today designated the Washington Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) as a voter registration assistance agency and directed the agency to appoint a voter registration assistance officer, efficiently help citizens register to vote and work with the Secretary of State’s office to ensure compliance with established voter registration procedures.    » read more »

July 2, 2007 -- An article in this weekend’s Miami Herald shows a clear connection between the Bush Administration, the GOP and voter suppression. According to the article Republicans have used their power and authority on three fronts, tax-exempt groups, the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and US Attorneys to exaggerate claims of voter fraud and challenge the legitimacy of legal voters.    » read more »

June 28, 2007 -- (JACKSON, Mississippi) – For the first time, Mississippi’s official state Election Board has gone on record supporting a requirement that Mississippi voters show some form of identification at the polls.    » read more »

June 27, 2007 -- CONCORD - New Hampshire Governor Lynch today signed into law legislation prohibiting New Hampshire from participating in the federal Real ID system.

“Real ID is intended to make us all safer, which I think we can all agree is a laudable goal. However, I strongly believe Real ID’s proposed haphazard implementation and onerous provisions would have the exact opposite effect. The federal government obviously did not think this burdensome system through and that is why we in New Hampshire are right to reject it,” Gov. Lynch said.    » read more »

Criminalizes & Increases Penalties for Deceptive Campaign Practices that Threaten Citizen Voting Rights

June 27, 2007 -- WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (D-MD) voted with the U.S. House on Monday, June 25, to pass the Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act of 2007. In the 2006 election, there were numerous examples of efforts to deceive or intimidate voters to keep them away from the polls, including in Maryland.    » read more »

Kennedy, Whitehouse Ask Whether Justice Officials Knew Former Rove Aide Allegedly Engaged in Illegal “Vote Caging” Before Naming Him Interim U.S. Attorney

June 18, 2007 - Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) today called for a Justice Department investigation into allegations of illegal voter suppression tactics by Republican political operatives, including former Karl Rove aide Tim Griffin, during the 2004 elections. Griffin is now serving as interim U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas.    » read more »

Washington, DC -- June 15, 2007 -- Nearly two million more young Americans under the age of 30 voted in the 2006 midterm elections as compared to the 2002 midterm elections, according to new Census data analyzed and released in a fact sheet by the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE). The data confirm early estimates by CIRCLE that 10.8 million young Americans voted in the 2006 midterm elections.    » read more »

15 June 2007 -- Turkey's president has called for a referendum on whether the next president should be elected by the people instead of by Parliament.

Ahmet Necdet Sezer called for the referendum after parliament voted for a second time to change the constitution to allow popular election of the president.

Mr. Sezer, who already vetoed the measure once, had to either approve it or call the referendum.

Turkey's ruling Islamist-rooted AK Party proposed the reform package after parliament failed to elect its candidate for president, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul.    » read more »

New Law Prevents South Carolina From Being Stuck With Costly Federal Mandate

Columbia, S.C. - June 13, 2007 - Gov. Mark Sanford today traveled to Greenville to sign S449, a bill that keeps South Carolina from participating in the costly federal mandate known as the REAL ID Act.    » read more »

June 14, 2007 -- BOSTON – Today, Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley testified before the Legislature's Joint Committee on Veterans and Federal Affairs in opposition to the implementation of the federal Real ID Act in Massachusetts. The committee held a hearing on a resolution opposing the federal act that has been filed by Senator Richard T. Moore.    » read more »

May 21, 2007 -- WEST PALM BEACH – Florida Governor Charlie Crist today signed House Bill 537 that will establish a paper trail for all votes cast in Florida elections. The election-reform legislation will provide optical scan machines for counties that do not already have them for Election Day voting and early voting sites. The legislation also changes the date of Florida’s presidential primary to the last Tuesday in January.    » read more »

May 18, 2007 -- Trenton – The New Jersey Attorney General’s Office has retained the New Jersey Institute of Technology to test samples of proposed voter-verified paper record systems to be used for electronic voting machines in New Jersey. These systems are intended to produce individual permanent paper records for each vote cast that can be made available for inspection and verification by voters and preserved for later use.    » read more »

May 4, 2007 -- CONCORD - New Hampshire Governor John Lynch today ceremonially signed a law eliminating straight ticket voting from New Hampshire's ballots.

"One of the most important things we can do as citizens is exercise our right to vote," Gov. Lynch said. "We want every vote to count, however with the confusion caused by straight ticket voting, that is not always the case."

The legislation, Senate Bill 36, received strong bipartisan support in the Senate and the House.    » read more »

May 2, 2007 -- PHOENIX -- Arizona Secretary of State Jan Brewer has released the voter registration figures for the State of Arizona for the second quarter of 2007. The statewide voter registration total has increased to 2,609,585 up 15,188 since the first quarter.

There are 1,019,220 registered Republicans, a decrease of 202, since January. Registered Democrats total 858,988, a decrease of 750 and registered Libertarians number 18,612, a decrease of 148 registered voters during that same period.    » read more »

April 23, 2007 -- WASHINGTON - The Justice Department today announced that on April 24, 2007, it will monitor the special election in Osceola County, Fla., to ensure compliance with the Voting Rights Act.

Justice Department personnel will monitor polling place activities in Osceola County, and a Civil Rights Division attorney will coordinate the federal activities and maintain contact with local election officials.    » read more »