Thank you for following the work of the AEI-Brookings Election Reform Project. We’ll continue looking at the issues of election reform at AEI and Brookings. For new work on congressional redistricting, please visit www.redistrictingproject.org.

Election Day Emergencies: Are We Prepared?
Across the Midwest, local officials in all fields are dealing with the aftermath of record flooding. Election administrators are no exception; in Johnson County, Indiana, for example, voting machines in storage ended up under six feet of water. In a new piece, Nathan Cemenska of Election Law @ Moritz explores whether states are prepared for similar emergencies and lays out a series of questions to be considered when planning for a variety of disasters.

To read the piece, go here.
Featured Resources
This article explores the ways that various states distribute authority for the purchase of new voting technology, and argues that the procurement process can be improved through cooperation and shared responsibility.
Post-election audits determine whether discrepancies between hand and machine ballot counts exist. Analysis of the 2008 election results in Connecticut find discrepancies in the vote counts caused by hand counting errors or vote misallocation, not as a result of machine tabulations.
Ned Foley’s post on Election Law @ Moritz delves into the issue of uncounted ballots. This category includes absentee ballots either wrongly rejected or arriving late (usually from overseas) and provisional ballots that haven’t yet been evaluated.
The Indiana Election Division published its Outreach Library for the 2010 elections. Among the resources available for both voters and election officials are guides for military and overseas voters, voter identification requirement outlines, and a handbook for election officials.
A pilot study examined the effectiveness of combining in-person training with on-line educational tools. Those who participated in on-line training performed better, were more confident in their work, and knew the specifics of their job better than those who had not participated in on-line training.
Research Projects
Dēmos is a non-partisan public policy research and advocacy organization founded in 2000. A multi-issue national organization, Dēmoscombines research, policy development, and advocacy to influence public debates and catalyze change.
The Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law is a non-partisan public policy and law institute that focuses on fundamental issues of democracy and justice.
electionline.org provides daily news updates on election reform issues, as well as deeper analysis of selected topics, including recent reports on voter registration, recount procedures, and the progress in implementing the Help America Vote Act since 2002.
Part of the Institute for Governmental Studies at the University of California at Berkeley, the Election Administration Research Center (EARC) aims to improve the administration of elections.
FairVote develops and promotes practical strategies to improve elections at the local, state and national levels.
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