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
JUNE 29, 2010
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
Although ethnic diversity of the U.S. has been increasing, voter registrations have not followed this trend. A new report finds that although the voting population is still unrepresentative of the American population at large, the 2008 voting population was more diverse than in years past.
This Project Vote study analyzed efforts in South Dakota, Kansas and Delaware to implement paperless voter registration systems.
Convened to provide guidance to the state of Utah in the areas of election law, the Commission made recommendations regarding voter registration. Joining a number of other groups in proposing automatic voter registration, the Commission adopted all of its recommendations unanimously.
This report explores the concept of open source software as it applies to voting systems, suggesting areas in which it may benefit the market but cautioning against a too-enthusiastic embrace of the technology.
This issue brief summarizes the case in favor of modernization of voter registration procedures. It notes that more than two million voters were unable to vote in the 2008 election as a direct result of issues with registration.
Research Projects
FairVote develops and promotes practical strategies to improve elections at the local, state and national levels.
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.
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.
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.
The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
www.aei.org
The Brookings Institution
www.brookings.edu
© Copyright 2012, AEI
and The Brookings Institution