2019 Election Updates
New York: Early Voting kicked off in the Empire State this week and overall things have been running fairly smoothly. About 55,000 people, including 21,000 in New York City, showed up for the first weekend of Early Voting. There were some hiccups though and Parents in New York City are none-too-pleased that Schools are being used as week-long Early Voting locations. In Rochester, there were Reports that Ballot Printing Machines didn’t work and that in some Early Voting Locations only One Voting Machine was Operating. There were Reports of Problems with E-Poll Books in Monroe County.
I Early Voted at a Jr. High School about 1 1/2 Miles away. I used the Bar-Coded ID Card that was Mailed to me, that was Scanned by the E-Poll Book. I then Signed using the E-Poll Book. My Ballot was then Printed from Blank Stock. I took it to a Security Screened area to Vote. It took Two times for the Scanner to Accept my Ballot. I Voted YES for using Ranked-Choice Voting, One of the Ballot Measure, for future Primaries in New York City.
Legislative Updates
Federal Legislation: Sen. Roy Blount (R-MO), Chairman of the Senate Rules Committee has Blocked Passage of HR1, the For the People Act. In Arguing against Passage, which One Senator can Stop under the Senate Rules, Blount said
the Legislation would give the Federal Government Unprecedented Control over Elections in this Country.
Arizona: The Fair Elections Act Ballot Measure was Unveiled this week and if Approved by Voters it would, among other things: Implement Automatic Voter Registration, Same-Day Voter Registration, Ballots Returned by Mail would Count as long as they’re Postmarked by 7pm on Election Day, and County Elections Officials would be Required to Locate Vote Centers on Tribal Lands.
California: The San Diego County Board of Supervisors Rejected a Request Tuesday from the County Registrar of Voters to establish Four Satellite Locations of the Registrar’s Office to Alleviate expected Long Voting Lines during the March 2020 Primary. That Proposal, which would have Required up to $615,000 in County Funding, was Intended to Prevent expected Backlogs caused by Same-Day Conditional Voter Registration.
Illinois: The Cook County Board has Approved the Voting Opportunity and Translation Equity Ordinance that will Require the County to Offer fully Translated Ballots in Six Additional Languages over the next Two years. Currently the Clerk’s Office is Required to Provide Elections Materials in English, Spanish, Chinese and Hindi. Moving forward, Ballots will also be offered in Korean, Tagalog, Polish, Arabic, and Russian.
Maine: A New Law will be in Effect for November 5th that Allows People who are Not Registered with Either of the Major Political Parties to Work as Election Clerks. Everyone who Works as an Election Clerk must be a Registered Voter, but they No longer have to be a Registered Democrat or Republican.
Massachusetts: The Northampton Charter Review Committee recently Supported Two Elections Changes: Lowering the Voting Age to 16, Making the City Clerk an Appointed Position, and Held for further Discussion the Possibility of Allowing Noncitizens to Vote.
The Senate Approved Language to Allow Early Voting for the State Primary Election Scheduled for Sept. 1st, 2020. The Amendment to the FY19 Supplemental Budget will provide for the Early Voting Period to Begin Aug. 24th and End Aug. 28th. The Early Voting Period will also Apply to any City or Town Election held at the Same Time as the State Primary. The Amendment also Provides an Additional $500,000 to Offset any Additional Costs to Cities and Towns in the Commonwealth. The Bill will be Reconciled between the House and the Senate before being Submitted to the Governor for his Approval.
Michigan: Senate Bills 117 and 297 would Allow Electronic Absentee Ballot Returns for Military Voters serving Overseas. The Voter would Sign their Absentee Ballot with an Electronic Signature Verified by the U.S. Department of Defense.
New Jersey: Atlantic County Freeholders on Tuesday Increased a Printer’s Contract by $56,910 to almost $195,000 for Mail-In and Provisional Ballots for the November Election. The Extra Costs are Due to a Change in State Law, Signed by Gov. Phil Murphy (D) in August, that almost Doubled the Number of Mail-In Ballots to be Mailed by the Atlantic County Clerk’s Office.
North Carolina: The Senate Voted 49 to 0 and the House Voted 114-1 on Senate Bill 683 that Restores Early Voting to the Saturday before Election Day and Extends Hours on that day from 8am to 3pm. The Bill also Includes Absentee Ballot Safeguards.
By a 59 to 51 Vote in the House and a 29 to 21 Vote in the Senate, Senate Bill 205 is Headed to Gov. Roy Cooper’s (D) Desk. The Bill would Remove from Voter Rolls anyone who is Disqualified from Jury Duty because they are Determined Not to be a U.S. Citizen.
Ohio: Cincinnati Councilmembers are considering whether or Not to Propose a City Charter Amendment that would Lower the Voting Age to 16.
Voters in the Village of Yellow Springs will be Asked to Pass Charter Amendments that would Lower the Voting Age to 16 and Allow Immigrants who are Not U.S. Citizens to Vote in Local Elections.
Pennsylvania: The House Voted 138 to 61 to Approve an Election Reform Package that Allows for: Mail-In Ballots; Eliminates Straight-Party Voting; Shortens the Voter Registration Deadline to 15 days; Bans Stickers from being Used for Write-In Votes; Extends the Deadline for Voting Absentee; Allows Permanently Disabled Absentee Voters to Submit a Single Application; and Provides $90 Million to help Cover the Cost of New Voting Machines.
Texas: The Denton County Commission has Postponed a Vote on whether or Not the County will Purchase a Mobile Polling Place.
Legal Updates
Alaska: Judge Yvonne Lamoureux has Ruled that Alaskans for Better Elections may begin Circulating Petitions Immediately for a Ballot Measure that would put Ranked-Choice Voting before the Voters. Lamoureux Overturned the Ruling of the State’s Attorney General that said the Initiative was too Broad and Broke the Single-Item Rule.
Kansas: Former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach Agreed to Legal Sanctions to Resolve a Disciplinary Complaint about his Conduct in a Voting Rights Case he Lost last year. As Part of the Resulting Diversion Agreement made Public, Kobach Admitted that he did Not Properly Supervise Lawyers and Others on his Staff while Contesting a Lawsuit that Challenged how he Carried out a New Voter ID Law.
Michigan: Priorities USA has filed Suit in Federal court Challenging the State’s Laws that Allow Absentee Votes to be Thrown Out if a Voter’s Signature on the Ballot doesn’t Match what’s On File. The Suit Alleges that Michigan’s Process for Determining whether Absentee Voters’ Signatures are Valid Violate Residents’ Due Process and Equal Protection Rights.
New Hampshire: The State Director of Elizabeth Warren’s Campaign has Joined the Fight against HB 1264. Elizabeth Wester, Submitted an Affidavit to the Court Last Monday. In it she Claims her Campaign is Not Fully Advising College Students on the Best Course of Action due to Muddled Advice from State Officials. “To date we have been unable to find any clarification from any state officials and are thus unable to adequately advise students on the ramifications of a decision to register to vote in NH,” Wester wrote. “The lack of clarity from the Secretary of State’s office has left a lot of confusion in college campuses across the state.”
Charles Eugene Cartier Jr., 81, was Charged with Voting in both Madison, NH and Attleboro, MA, during the November 2016 General Election. He has been Indicted by a Carroll County Superior Court Grand Jury. The Charge is a Class B Felony.
North Carolina: The North Carolina Democratic Party, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee have filed Suit in Wake County Over the State’s 2018 Early Voting Law. The Suit seeks to Restore Voting on the Saturday before Election Day. It Claims that the Law “unconstitutionally burdens North Carolinians’ right to vote.”
A Three-Judge Panel Ruled this week that the Plaintiffs would likely Win their Challenge to the State’s Congressional Lines at Trial, so they Issued an Injunction Against using the 2016 Congressional District Map in the 2020 Elections.
Texas: The Texas Democratic Party, Joined by the Democratic Campaign Arms for the U.S. House and Senate filed Suit this week Alleging that the State’s Move to Effectively End the Use of what were known as Temporary or Mobile Early Voting Sites is Unconstitutional because it Discriminates against Young Voters by Shrinking their Access to the Ballot Box.
NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker
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