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.

Hope and Experience: Election Reform through the Lens of the AEI-Brookings Election Reform Project
We launched the AEI-Brookings Election Reform Project in June 2005 with the encouragement and financial support of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Five years later we bring the project to a close. We take this opportunity to reflect on the state of election administration in the United States almost a decade after the extended and controversial Florida vote count in the 2000 presidential election and suggest how additional changes in technology, election law and administrative practices might further strengthen American elections in the years ahead.
Featured Resources
The EAC's annual report on 2008 spending provides detailed information regarding states’ usage of HAVA funds, as well as data on competitive grants distributed by the EAC. Of the $2.96 billion they received from the EAC, states have spent 76% and are expected to use remaining funds in 2010.
Responding to a request regarding the feasibility of adopting a vote-by-mail system in Los Angeles, the City Clerk wrote this memo. In it she discusses the potential impact of this change on voter turnout and the cost of implementing such a program.
Although states are continuing to pass laws and reach decisions to comply with the mandates of HAVA and related laws, Daniel Tokaji argues that the United States still lacks a well-functioning independent electoral management body.
Although the Senate recount in Minnesota resulted in a winner, questions still remained regarding the classification of unopened, rejected absentee ballots. A district court concluded that these ballots are public data and that the plaintiffs, state television news organizations, may view them.
The Florida Supreme Court ruled on the constitutionality of Sarasota County’s charter election law amendments, finding that state law does not bar individual counties from creating their own election laws.
Research Projects
FairVote develops and promotes practical strategies to improve elections at the local, state and national levels.
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.
Center for Democracy & Election Management was established at the School of Public Affairs at American University in 2002. Their broader goal is to pave the way for and strengthen democracy through improved electoral performance.
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.
Project Vote is a national nonpartisan, nonprofit 501(c)(3) that works to empower, educate, and mobilize low-income, minority, youth, and other marginalized and under-represented voters.
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