Voting Rights & Elections
The vote is the heart of democracy. Yet today, our voting systems are deeply flawed. Ineffective election administration, unaccountable purges of voter registration lists and insecure electronic systems threaten to disenfranchise countless American citizens. New barriers to voting such as highly restrictive voter ID requirements threaten to disenfranchise millions more.
Voting rights and election integrity depend upon sound administration in thousands of jurisdictions. America's irreducible goals should be: everyone who wants to register, can register; everyone who wants to vote, can vote; every vote that is cast is a vote that is counted.
The Brennan Center for Justice fights to strengthen America's voting systems. Presentations on vote suppression strategies and their promotion by the U.S. Department of Justice can be found here and here. In the past two years, we successfully challenged anti-voter laws in Florida, Ohio, and Washington. We published national studies on issues ranging from electronic voting to voter databases. We helped pass pro-voter and defeat anti-voter laws in dozens of states and in Congress. We track federal election reform legislation at Federal Election Reform. Now we are engaged in a long-term effort to reform voting laws, with new proposals to improve electronic voting, restore the voting rights of people with felony convictions, and a forthcoming proposal for a system of universal voter registration.
League of Women Voters of Florida v. Browning
Case challenging restrictions on third-party voter registration drives.
Crawford v. Marion County Election Board
Determining which American citizens are able to exercise their right to vote and which Americans are not, the Indiana voter ID case is the most important voting rights case since Bush v. Gore.
A lawsuit filled by the Brennan Center and other voting rights advocates challenging Florida’s requirement that the driver’s license or Social Security number on a registration form be verified before a voter can be registered to vote.
Those who urge harsh voter ID laws can’t be too happy about the story of the Indiana nuns turned away from the polls. So now they have started to respond. Their answer: attack the nuns!
Protecting Votes, One Call at a Time
How many lawyers does it take to run an Election Protection Hotline? You can come up with your own punchline, but the actual answer is about thirty at a time, in five hour shifts....
Crawford—More Rhetorical Bark than Legal Bite?
On April 28, the Supreme Court handed down a decision in the Crawford cases, rejecting a challenge to Indiana’s law requiring voters at the polls to provide certain types of government-issued photo identification. I had predicted that the opinion would likely have impact far beyond Indiana....
Illustrations by Risko
Election Protection Off to a Great Start Assisting
Nearly 400 Hotline Calls So Far Reporting Primary Election Barriers.
Brennan Center Lauds Federal Election Day Registration Bill
The Election Day Registration bill introduced by Senators Feingold and Klobuchar, and Representative Ellison would allow citizens to register to vote for all federal elections by registering on Election Day at polling places.
FL’s Voter Registration Law Halted Until July 2008
Secretary of State Kurt S. Browning stated he will not enforce the restrictions until the administrative rulemaking process is completed, which he estimates will occur no earlier than early July 2008.
Letter in Support of H.R. 5803
Letter in support of H.R. 5803, the Back Up Paper Ballot Bill.
EAC Voting Advocate Roundtable
Responses to discussion questions during voting advocate rountable discussion.
Letter in Support of H.R. 5036
Brennan Center letter to Rep. Zoe Lofgren in support of H.R. 5036, the Emergency Assistance for Secure Elections Act of 2008
Proof of Citizenship Requirements; Chart of State Legislation
In the current session (2007–2008), legislators in 19 different states have proposed proof of citizenship requirements for voter registration. The chart here, last updated on 5/6/2008, sets forth the known bills and their current status.
Florida: a Tough Place to Cast a Ballot
Florida is courting electoral trouble. Heading toward another presidential election, state officials are making it increasingly difficult for citizens to vote, according to Miami Herald editorial.
Three Strikes Against Florida Voters
n the past three weeks, Florida courts and election officials have put new roadblocks in the way for Floridians who want to participate in elections and exercise their right to vote.