April 2013

A new sweeping election bill in Colorado – including same-day registration and expanded vote by mail – is once again dividing the state’s election community.

Four experienced election officials who are leaving the field offer important lessons for the next generation of election administration.

A new paper from MIT’s Charles Stewart finds that racial minorities waited longer than whites to vote in 2012 – but suggests that this disparity is strongly associated with more densely populated communities rather than simply with race.

The Senate version of a Florida election reform bill would reinstate the witness requirement for absentee ballots. That proposal is drawing criticism from local election officials, who say it will create barriers to the ballot for military and overseas voters.

A new report on rejected ballots from the Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting is a next-generation look at how data can transform election journalism – and election administration.

A close state legislative race in Kansas has led to wrangling in state and federal court and state legislation about whether or not election officials can release the names of voters casting provisional ballots.

A new analysis of North Carolina early voting data shows that proposed cutbacks on early voting could affect a large proportion of the state’s voters. What’s more, it represents the kind of empirical research that is the future of the field.

A Pennsylvania county is spending $26K to replace the batteries in its voting machines – yet another “small stuff” moment in modern election administration.

A new report from the New York City Department of Investigation rips the Board of Elections for overstaffing the low-turnout election in 2011 to the tune of $2.5 million. And once again, the New York Daily News is on the case.

Steve Weir, who is retiring as Contra Costa (CA) County Clerk, recently shared with electionlineWeekly his views (plus some facts and figures) on the usefulness of election data. They’re worth sharing here.