Registration Reform: Progress or More Problems?
FEBRUARY 2007
Registration Reform: Progress or More Problems?
While the Senate passed on an opportunity to examine election reform issues by confirming two new EAC commissioners without a hearing, researchers continue to explore a variety of topics. On voter registration, for example, electionline.org has examined the concept of Election Day Registration, while the Brennan Center has looked at new restrictions on voter registration drives.
Featured Resources
Berinsky concludes, contrary to popular opinion, that electoral reforms that ease restrictions on casting ballots in fact increase socioeconomic biases in the composition of the voting public. He advocates shifting the focus of electoral reform from institutional changes to political engagement
Electionline.org surveys the state of election reform in 2006 and compares it to that of 2000. The report provides state-by-state data in the areas of voting systems, voter ID requirements, provisional voting, and more.
The CRS surveys more than 1,500 local election officials in fifty states regarding their views on voting systems, HAVA, and voting system vendors
This paper examines public perceptions of the voter registration process and argues that efforts to reform the voter registration process should be carefully targeted to certain segments of the population who have the most difficulty with the existing system.
On December 4, the Election Reform Project co-sponsored an event looking back at the 2008 election. Here, staff summarize the conference's highlights.
Research Projects
Election Law @ Moritz, run through Moritz College of Law at the Ohio State University, contains both explanation and commentary on a wealth of election reform issues from a legal perspective.
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.
The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
www.aei.org
The Brookings Institution
www.brookings.edu
© Copyright 2006, AEI
and The Brookings Institution