Feature Archive |

Early and Absentee Voting
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2006
In its first mayoral election since Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans exceeded expectations for efficiency and turnout. The state's massive voter education campaign, large multi-precinct vote centers, and use of early and absentee voting yielded a turnout of 36 percent, down only 10 percent from 2002. What can we learn from New Orleans and other cities and states?
Election Day may have been November 7, but countless citizens across the country cast their ballots in advance. The Election Reform Project’s John Fortier has taken a look at early and absentee balloting issues in a new book, while the GAO recently released a report on the particular challenges facing military voters.
2007
While the media focuses on how the primary calendar for 2008 means that votes will be cast earlier than ever before, researchers are asking other questions about early and absentee voting. A report from the Early Voting Information Center examines whether early voting has a positive impact on turnout, while the EAC is exploring reforms to the absentee ballot process.
While U.S. elections are administered largely at the local level, the issues that officials face extend far outside the boundaries of their jurisdictions. One new report examines how overseas voting is managed across the country, while another offers solutions to the particular problems confronted by military voters.
An estimated six million Americans living abroad are eligible to vote in federal elections, and they present administrators with unique challenges. A new report from electionline.org looks at these concerns, and innovations that address them, while members of the Election Reform Project team weigh in on the issue as well.
2008
Citing costs and administrative concerns, Florida Democrats have abandoned a plan to redo that state’s presidential primary by mail, and the decision is likely to be welcomed by various election reform experts who have highlighted the proposal’s potential shortcomings.
The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
www.aei.org
The Brookings Institution
www.brookings.edu
© Copyright 2006, AEI
and The Brookings Institution