Voter Registration Modernization

Voter Registration Modernization will remove the onus of voter registration from citizens by placing the responsibility for maintaining voter registration with state governments. Modernizing the system will expand the franchise to over 65 million eligible Americans, while eliminating the burden of last minute registration placed on election officials and removing the need for third party registration drives. By bringing the registration system into the 21st century, we will eliminate unnecessary bureaucratic processes, save states money, free up precious resources for election officials, and simplify the process for voters.

  • Please click here for our latest report on paperless registration and how states have moved to modernize their voter registration systems.
  • Please click here for a brief fact sheet on Voter Registration Modernization.
  • Please click here for a PowerPoint presentation on how states have begun the voter registration modernization process.
  • Please click here for an issue brief that outlines suggested components of a bill to modernize the voter registration system
  • Please click here for Components of a Bill to Modernize the Voter Registration System.

Voter Registration Modernization Includes Four Features:

  • Automated Registration: State election officials automatically register consenting eligible citizens by electronically transmitting reliable information from other government lists.
  • Portability: Once an eligible citizen is on a state’s voter rolls, she remains registered and her records move with her so long as she continues to reside in that state.
  • Safety Net: Eligible citizens can correct errors on the voter rolls before and on Election Day.
  • Online Access: Voters can register, check and update their registration records through a secure and accessible online portal.

Who Benefits from Voter Registration Modernization:

  • Election Officials: Our current registration system demands an enormous amount of time, money, and effort from local officials. Excessive clerical work also distracts from the planning and supervision necessary to ensure a sound Election Day.
  • Voters: Registration-related problems are the biggest obstacle voters face each election season. Obstacles disproportionately affect military service members, seniors, students, movers, and Americans with disabilities. Every election cycle, registration applications go unprocessed because of enormous backlogs. Additionally, the overburdened registration process exacerbates other problems on Election Day, leading to long lines, chaotic polling locations, and overwhelmed volunteers.
  • Democracy: The current patchwork of voter registration laws and procedures leaves the system vulnerable to fraud and tampering.

Why Voter Registration Modernization Works:

  • Automated, Permanent: Voter Registration Modernization will make voter registration automatic and permanent, bringing all eligible, unregistered voters onto the rolls and keeping them there, even after they move (this is particularly important for members of the military and their families, as well as students).
  • Election Day Correction: A key component of Voter Registration Modernization, this will serve as an important failsafe at the polls (particularly for voters who fall through the cracks).
  • Better-Run Elections: Voter Registration Modernization will free up resources and allow election officials to concentrate on important pre-election preparations to ensure elections run smoothly, rather than processing a surge of registration forms typically received a week or two before Election Day.
The Brennan Center is helping to lead the effort to modernize our voter registration system to bring it into the 21st century. The following information is available on this webpage:
Hearings & Legislation: Information on federal legislation and Congressional hearings on Voter Registration Modernization, including links to hearing testimony and summaries of legislation can be found here.
News & Opinion: Selected news articles, editorials, op-eds, blog posts, and other media that discuss Voter Registration Modernization.
Research & Publications: Research and publications authored by the Brennan Center and others on aspects of Voter Registration Modernization.
Support for VRM: Election officials, newspapers, and others have expressed support for modernizing our voter registration system. See what they've said here.
Federal Election Reform: Comprehensively catalogs election reform activity at the federal level.