Pew Study Shows Need for Voter Registration Modernization

Following the release of Inaccurate, Costly, and Ineffective by the Pew Center on the States, the Brennan Center released this statement Wendy Weiser and Lawrence Norden, the leaders of the Center’s Democracy Program:

“Today’s report proves that our nation’s ramshackle voter registration system does not work for 21st century America. In 2008, 2.2 million votes were lost because of registration problems. It is time to harness new technology to modernize our voter registration system.

“Last year, a slew of states passed new laws making it harder to vote. Notably, none of those laws addressed the concerns highlighted in this study. Rather than erecting barriers between eligible American citizens and their right to vote, we should be opening pathways to a modern voting system. Voter registration modernization is a common sense reform that would cost less, register many more voters, and curb any possibility of fraud. It should be put in place without delay.”

Read the Brennan Center’s proposal to modernize our voter registration system, our comprehensive study on new voting restrictions that could make it harder for 5 million people to vote, and our report on voter registration around the world.

For more information, or to set up an interview, please contact Erik Opsal at erik.opsal@nyu.edu or 646–292–8356.