AEI-Brookings Election Reform Project

Election Reform Newsletter, Issue #41

Election Reform Newsletter

December 5, 2007

On Topic: Election Administration

The Midwest and Beyond

As local officials in early primary states are focused on their specific micro-level preparations, two new reports take a macro-level look at administration practices. One, by researchers at Ohio State, takes a detailed look at five Midwestern states, while the other, from electionline.org, focuses on the various provisions of HAVA.


»	REPORT: "From Registration to Recounts: The Election Ecosystems of Five Midwestern States," Steven Huefner, Daniel Tokaji, and Edward Foley, Election Law @ Moritz (December 2007)

»	REPORT: "The Help America Vote Act at 5" (PDF), electionline.org (November 2007)


On the Ground on Election Day

For most of the year, the topics that election reform researchers explore are largely theoretical. On Election Day, however, the conceptual can quickly become the actual and, as the Election Reform Project’s Tim Ryan describes in this piece about his experiences this November, no amount of planning on the part of election officials and voters will always close the gap between policy and implementation. Read more »


Of Machines and Markets

The first session of the 110th Congress is winding down, and it appears that one of the many items left pending will be paper trail legislation. In a recent Roll Call column, the Election Reform Project’s Norman Ornstein explores why Americans trust voting machines far less than other technology in their lives (such as ATMs) and argues that market forces have profoundly inhibited the improvement of voting systems. Read more »

New Resources

VOTING INTEGRITY


Voter ID Requirements and the Disenfranchisements of Latino, Black, and Asian Voters (PDF) Matt Baretto (University of Washington), Stephen A. Nuno (University of California, Irvine), and Gabriel Sanchez (University of New Mexico) (September 2007)

The Truth About Voter Fraud (PDF) Justin Levitt Brennan Center for Justice at the NYU School of Law (November 2007)

VOTER REGISTRATION


An Audit Report on the Voter Registration System at the Texas Secretary of State's Office (PDF) Office of the Texas State Auditor (November 2007)

EARLY AND ABSENTEE VOTING


Draft: UOCAVA Voters and the Electronic Transmission of Voting Materials in Four States (PDF) Q2 Data and Research (September 2007)

Viewpoint: Using Technology to Improve UOCAVA Blake Hulnick and Daniel O'Brien AEI-Brookings Election Reform Project (November 2007)

MORE ON ELECTION REFORM

» Voter Registration
» Voter Access
» Early and Absentee Voting
» Provisional Balloting
» Technology Issues
» Election Administration
» Voting Integrity
» More Resources

Events

Public Meeting
U.S. Election Assistance Commission
December 11, 2007
Austin, TX

» Events

About The Election
Reform Project

The AEI-Brookings Election Reform Project aims to synthesize election-related research, link the research and policy communities, track and assist the implemen-
tation of the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) and encourage improvements in HAVA and in election conduct and administration.

» Read More

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	The Election Reform Newsletter is a periodic e-mail publication from AEI-Brookings Election Reform Project http://www.electionreformproject.org

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Almost 55 Million, or One-Third of the Nation’s Voters, Will Face New Voting Equipment in 2006 Election (PDF) | OCTOBER 2006

Election Data Services

On Election Day, one-third of the nation's voters will use new voting machines. A new report from Election Data Services describes the changes, highlights geographic patterns, and discusses what lessons past changes may have for this election.

The Promise and Pitfalls of Electronic Voting: Results from a Usability Field Test (PDF) | 2005

Paul S. Herrnson (University of Maryland) et al.

This study finds high usability ratings among a variety of electronic voting machine interfaces (optical scan, touch screen, buttons and dials, membrane buttons), but sees variation depending on machine characteristics and the voting tasks required

DOD Expands Voting Assistance to Military Absentee Voters, But Challenges Remain (PDF) | SEPTEMBER 2006

United States Government Accountability Office

This report examines the changes made in the Federal Voting Assistance Program between the 2000 and 2004 elections. It also highlights the many challenges related to military absentee voting that remain, particularly as the program incorporates new technology.

Electronic Voting Machines and the Standards-Setting Process (PDF) | 2004

Eddan Katz and Rebecca Bolin, Yale School of Law

This paper, part of the Committee on a Framework for Understanding Electronic Voting initiative at the National Research Council of the National Academies, lays out criteria for evaluating new voting systems.

Political Participation and the Accessability of the Ballot Box (PDF) | JUNE 2003

James Gimpel and Jason E. Schuknecht, Political Geography

Authors use voter turnout records to determine the effect of polling place accessibility on voter turnout, and find that easy accessibility does in fact raise turnout.

More Resources »

Election Law @ Moritz

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

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.

More Research Projects »