Essentials For a New Democracy: Election Integrity: Communities & Organizations

All descriptions are excerpted from the original sites.

http://www.brennancenter.org/

The Brennan Center for justice at the NYU School of Law  is a nonpartisan law and policy institute that seeks to improve our systems of democracy and justice. We work to hold our political institutions and laws accountable to the twin American ideals of democracy and equal justice for all.

The Center’s Work ranges from voting rights to campaign finance reform, from ending mass incarceration to preserving Constitutional projection in the fight against terrorism.

Part think tank, part advocacy group, part cutting-edge communications hub, we start with rigorous research. We craft innovative policies. And we fight for them — in Congress and the states, the courts, and in the court of public opinion.

An excellent source of news/current events, research and projects focused on Voting Rights & Elections; Money in Politics; Government & Court Reform; Justice For All; Liberty & National Security

http://www.bendthearc.us/campaigns/voting-rights

In the wake of the recent Supreme Court decision to dismantle key sections of the Voting Rights Act, Bend the Arc is launching a voting rights campaign and will be working with our allies to pass new legislation to protect the right to vote for all.

The unfortunate reality is that, while we have made great strides as a country, discrimination in voting is not a thing of the past; it still happens today. Since the Supreme Court’s decision, dozens of states, counties, and cities have changed voting procedures in ways that make it harder for communities of color, women, first-time voters, the elderly, and the poor to cast their vote.

We can fix this if we act together. A bipartisan group of members of Congress have crafted legislation that is designed to curtail the harm done by the court. Now they need our help to force this to a vote in Congress. Nothing will happen unless we strongly raise our voices alongside our allies in a groundswell of support. And if we do nothing, we leave the door open for increased voter discrimination.

Take action and spread the word:

http://SoAllCanVote.org

Voting is a sacred right and the responsibility of all Americans. Throughout our history as a nation, African Americans, women, and others have fought courageously to gain equal access to this fundamental right.

This bill provides us with flexible, modern, forward-looking updates to the Voting Rights Act that will ensure a real-time response to voting discrimination in every part of the country.

Unless we act now many voters will, for the first time in 50 years, be left vulnerable to a broad swath of discriminatory practices. Join Bend the Arc in mobilizing the Jewish community to help pass the Voting Rights Amendment Act.

https://www.rockthevote.com

1875 Connecticut Avenue NW, 10th Floor
, Washington, DC 2009, 
(202) 719-9910

Rock the Vote is the largest nonprofit and nonpartisan organization in the United States devoted to the youth vote to the polls. The organization has pioneered ways to make voting easier for young adults by simplifying and demystifying voter registration and elections.

Since 1990, Rock the Vote has been registering and turning out millions of new voters.
Rock the Vote is the largest nonprofit and nonpartisan organization in the United States driving the youth vote to the polls.
For more than 25 years, Rock the Vote has revolutionized the way we use pop culture, music, art, and technology to inspire political activity. The organization has pioneered ways to make voting easier for young adults by simplifying and demystifying voter registration and elections.

http://www.electproject.org/

The United States Elections Project is an information source for the United States electoral system. The mission of the project is to provide timely and accurate election statistics, electoral laws, research reports, and other useful information regarding the United States electoral system. By providing this information, the project seeks to inform the people of the United States on how their electoral system works, how it may be improved, and how they can participate in it.

http://www.projectvote.org/

Project Vote is a national, nonpartisan, nonprofit organization founded on the belief that an organized, diverse electorate is the key to a better America. Project Vote’s mission is to build an electorate that accurately represents the diversity of this nation’s citizenry, and to ensure that every eligible citizen can register, vote, and cast a ballot that counts.

In recent years, Project Vote has mostly focused on improving voter registration. Our goals are to:

• eliminate disparities in registration rates between minorities and majorities;
• see state governments play a leading role in registering Americans to vote; and
• ensure that constituency-based organizations can run effective voter registration drives.

To achieve these objectives, we engage in advocacy, litigation, research, and technical assistance to:

• promote voter registration laws, rules, and procedures that facilitate, rather than impede, voter registration;
• ensure that list maintenance procedures do not remove eligible voters; and
• advance innovative solutions that remove the barriers to voting.

This work is conducted through three major program areas: Voter Participation, Election Administration, and Government Agency Voter Registration.

 

 

FairVote has identified several key problems with our election process and several simple and practical solutions. The site provides clear explanations including video demonstrations of key solutions – Ranked Choice Voting being at the top of the list. There is a lot of information on the site and it is well worth the effort to read and learn about their suggestions, explanations and research.

Problems:

http://www.fairvote.org/problems

• Unfair representation: Congress works best when all voices are represented and heard in the political process. Right now, politicians only reflect a small number of Americans. Independent and unaffiliated voters rarely have candidates in office that reflect their interest. Green party and other third party voters struggle to even get a candidate on the ballot. Even Democratic and Republican voters are often unheard by their elected officials. In many states, one party is so dominant that voters from the other party have no say at all in their government. The voices and perspectives of women, people of color, and other minorities are also underrepresented in our Congress. When whole groups of voters are locked out of having a say in government, our congress isn’t truly of the people, by the people and for the people.

• Limited Voter Choice: Voters today are presented with fewer and fewer true choices in elections. Because of the top-down effects of winner-take-all elections, “spoiler candidates” are ridiculed and reviled, and voters are forced to choose the lesser of two evils instead of voicing their true preferences. Primaries are poorly attended and produce hyper-polarized general elections. Voters nationwide are foreclosed from full participation in the democratic process because those running in it do not present meaningful choices for voters.

• Skewed Primary Elections: Primary elections are often plagued with low and unrepresentative turnout. This can be fueled by a number of factors, including the timing of elections, whether they are partisan or non-partisan, and who is allowed to vote in them. There are several degrees of voter access to primary elections based on party identification.

Solutions:

http://www.fairvote.org/solutions

• Ranked Choice Voting / Instant Runoff: With ranked choice voting, voters can rank as many candidates as they want in order of choice. Candidates do best when they attract a strong core of first-choice support while also reaching out for second and even third choices. When used as an “instant runoff” to elect a single candidate like a mayor or a governor, RCV helps elect a candidate that better reflects the support of a majority of voters. When used as a form of fair representation voting to elect more than one candidate like a city council, state legislature or even Congress, RCV helps to more fairly represent the full spectrum of voters.

Ranked Choice Voting is easy to understand with a simple demonstration:

RCV with single winner votes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5SLQXNpzsk

RCV for multiple winner votes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNxwMdI8OWw

• Fair Representation: Proportional representation is the principle that a legislature should reflect all of the voters who elect them. Like-minded voters should be able to elect representatives in proportion to their number. In contrast, most elections in the United States are winner-take-all: instead of reflecting all voters, our legislators reflect only the biggest or strongest group of voters that elected them, leaving all others unrepresented. The use of winner-take-all voting methods in our elections for state legislatures and Congress is a central reason for major problems with our politics: gerrymandering, partisan gridlock, no-choice elections and distortions in fair representation all have roots in the inherent problems of winner-take-all methods. At FairVote, we advocate for American, constitutional, and candidate-based forms of proportional representation, which we call “fair representation voting.” Read on to learn more about fair, proportional representation systems in use across the United States today, about FairVote’s efforts to expand their use, and how to promote change in your community today.

• Democracy Innovations: democracy innovations are reforms and concepts that would improve everyday democracy for every American by making government and elections more responsive, reflective, and accessible. These include: Top Four; Voter Registration; Districts Plus; Right to Vote Amendment; Primary Voting at Age 17; Open Ticket Voting; Universal Voting Registration; Lowering the Voting Age.

A Guide to Election Laws

http://www.electionary.info/en/

 

https://www.verifiedvoting.org