Arkansas GOP Outraged After Candidate Gets Kicked Off the Voter Rolls

Arkansas Attorney General candidate, Leslie Rutledge, is crying foul over the cancellation of her voter registration form.  Rutledge, the Republican nominee for Attorney General, was kicked off the voter rolls after it was discovered that she failed to cancel previous voter registrations in Washington, DC and Virginia, and re-register in Pulaski County when she moved.  Pulaski County Clerk Larry Crane, a Democrat, said he was legally obligated to remove her after receiving a letter flagging this issue.

Rutledge and Republican groups are calling the removal a “dirty trick” that was politically motivated.  But what happened to Rutledge is in fact very common, and becoming even more common after the state implemented a number of strict voter restrictions, including a controversial voter ID law being litigated in court Thursday.

Arkansas’ strict voter ID law caused chaos during the May primary.  Voters were inappropriately grilled on their personal information at the polls.  Many absentee ballots from legitimate voters were discarded because they did not include proof of ID.

The Republican National Lawyers Association has also come to Rutledge’s defense, expressing outrage that she was “systematically removed from voter rolls within 90 days of a federal election.”  RNLA Chairman J. Randy Evans went on, “The fact is that it is a clear and unmistakable attempt at the most harmful kind of voter suppression in violation of federal law – removing a qualified female voter from the rolls notwithstanding her valid registration and actual votes in the last 4 elections in violation of her civil rights. Democrats should be embarrassed.”

Ironically, the RNLA has been instrumental in pushing mass voter purges across the country, specifically defending the right to purge voters within 90 days of the election.

Rutledge, however, is proud of her role in defending Arkansas election laws accused of discriminating against minorities and low-income voters.  “Whether it was concerning Voter ID, Redistricting, Obamacare, or the IRS targeting conservative groups, I sat at the table side-by-side my fellow Republican attorneys and we developed legal strategies to proactively stand against or at times defend our citizens from the overreach of this Administration,” Rutledge wrote in an Attorney General questionnaire.










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote!

Michael H. Drucker
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GA State Senator Complains that Voting Is Too Convenient for Black People

One of Georgia’s largest counties announced last week that it will allow early voting on a Sunday in late October and will open an early voting location in a shopping mall popular among local African-Americans.  Concerned that this will lead to higher African-American voter turnout and hurt his party’s dominance, one state lawmaker is speaking out and vowing to stop this easy voting for minority voters.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported on Tuesday that Georgia State Senator Fran Millar (R) penned an angry response to DeKalb County’s announcement that early voting will be available on Sunday, October 26, and that an early-voting location will be opened at The Gallery at South DeKalb Mall. Millar represents part of the county and is Senior Deputy Whip for the Georgia Senate Republicans.

Millar wrote:

Now we are to have Sunday voting at South DeKalb Mall just prior to the election.  Per Jim Galloway of the AJC, this location is dominated by African American shoppers and it is near several large African American mega churches such as New Birth Missionary Baptist.  Galloway also points out the Democratic Party thinks this is a wonderful idea – what a surprise.  I’m sure Michelle Nunn and Jason Carter are delighted with this blatantly partisan move in DeKalb.

Many predominantly Black churches around the country organize “Souls to the Polls” events that encourage churchgoers to vote after attending Sunday church services.  This often relies on carpooling and is perfectly legal, according to the Freedom From Religion Foundation (which advocates for a strict separation of church and state).  While Republicans in places like North Carolina and Ohio have pushed to eliminate Sunday voting hours, it is unusual for a legislator to so candidly admit that this strategy is about reducing African American turnout.

Millar notes that he is “investigating if there is any way to stop this action” and that he and State Representative Mike Jacobs (R) “we will try to eliminate this election law loophole in January,” as it might boost Democratic voter turnout.

On his Facebook page Tuesday, Millar stood by his comments, writing: “I would prefer more educated voters than a greater increase in the number of voters.  If you don’t believe this is an effort to maximize Democratic votes pure and simple, then you are not a realist.  This is a partisan stunt and I hope it can be stopped.”










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote!

Michael H. Drucker
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House Democrats Back Fight on Voter Registration Rules

House Democratic leaders are backing a lawsuit that fights efforts in two states to add stricter requirements to federal voter registration forms.

The case, Kris W. Kobach et al. v. United States Election Assistance Commission, centers on a request from Kansas and Arizona to add proof-of-citizenship requirements to the federal voter registration form that matches their state laws.

The House Democrats, led by Committee on House Administration Ranking Member Robert Brady of Pennsylvania, argue in an amicus brief released on Wednesday that providing that proof would limit voting rights.

“Laws are already in place to deter non-citizens from registering to vote and to punish those that violate that law.  Additional burdens are an outrageous and insidious way to disfranchise eligible voters by throwing arbitrary obstacles in their way. It’s nothing more than voter suppression,” Brady said in a statement.

The U.S. Court of Appeals of the Tenth Circuit is expected to hear the case Monday, August 25, 2014.

Expanding the ability for voters to register without tougher proof-of-citizenship requirements has become an election-year focus for Democrats since the Supreme Court struck down key passages in the Voting Rights Act last year.

The amicus brief was signed by Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer, Assistant Democratic Leader James Clyburn, Democratic Caucus Chairman Xavier Becerra, Congressional Black Caucus Chair Marcia Fudge, Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair Rubén Hinojosa and Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus Chair Judy Chu.

On March 19, 2014 U.S. District Court Judge Eric Melgren, a George W. Bush appointee, issued an opinion in Kobach v U.S. Election Assistance.

The opinion determines that Kansas and Arizona are free to require that individuals who use the federal voter registration form must attach documents that prove they are citizens.

Specifically, the decision orders the U.S. Election Assistance Commission to amend the federal forms in use in Kansas and Arizona, so that the instructions on the forms used in those states explains to applicants that the paperwork is needed.

So it comes down to, do you verify a voter is eligible to vote before they register or penalize them after they register and it turns out they were not eligible?










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote!

Michael H. Drucker
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LESSONS LEARNED FROM THE 2012 ELECTION

I am on an email list from OurTime.org. It is a nationwide non-profit organization that leverages online organizing, new media, and popular culture to enhance the political voice of young Americans. More than one million members strong, they lead campaigns that register voters, remove ballot barriers, and highlight relevant news and policies that impact their lives.

They released a report with seven recommendations to improve and modernize our nation's electoral system.

These include:

- Universal online voter registration

- Online absentee ballot request forms

- A federally standardized list of permissible forms of voter ID

- Mandatory early voting periods

- Uniform standards for voting machine allocation

- Same day voter registration

- Requiring colleges and universities to act as DMV's in registering their enrolling students

CLICK HERE to read the report.

I would add the following:

"It’s time to rethink our largely partisan system of state and local election administration. We risk leaving our election processes open to partisan mischief – or to the perception of such mischief. We should have a serious conversation about solutions to this risk, including developing an entirely professionalized and non-partisan system for administering our elections."










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote!

Michael H. Drucker
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Promote Our Vote

Promote Our Vote seeks 100 percent voter participation in the United States. To that end, Promote Our Vote advances local, state and national action to protect and promote your vote with the ultimate goal of enshrining an affirmative right to vote in the U.S. Constitution.

Promote Our Vote provides up-to-date coverage about the movement for a constitutional right to vote. Keeping you informed about local action, legislation, and other related events is an important part of Promote Our Vote's mission.

Promote Our Vote









NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote!

Michael H. Drucker
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NYC Voters Registering for 2013 Mayor Race

New York is a closed primary state. Anyone who wants to register or switch parties to vote in next year's primary needs to do so by Friday. New Yorkers registered to vote can cast a ballot in the city's general election next year but only voters registered with a party can vote in party primaries.

Other states are much more flexible than New York when it comes to changing party affiliation. In New Jersey, for example, first-time primary voters can register with a new party on primary day, right before they vote.

"Elections should be structured to encourage as many voters to participate as possible," said Dick Dadey of Citizens Union. "By requiring you to declare your party affiliation a year from the election you want to participate in, you may be disenfranchising people from voting in the most consequential election in the city."

A spokesman for the state Board of Elections said the registration deadline has been in effect for at least 60 years. He said it is designed to keep voters from switching parties at the last minute to attempt to throw an election in their true party's favor.

Some New Yorkers who have never been registered as Democrats are suddenly joining the party. They have not undergone a political transformation. They say they are simply doing it because they want their vote to count in the 2013 political contests in New York City.

James Panero is a lifelong Republican. He even writes for a conservative magazine. But he is leaving his party to become a Democrat.

"My feeling is that if you're conservative, if you're a moderate, if you're any kind of voter in this city, you need to register now as a Democrat to vote in the 2013 primaries," he said.

Some New Yorkers feel that in order for their vote to really count locally, they need to participate in the Democratic primary. Many races, including the fight for City Hall, may be effectively decided before the general election.









NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote!

Michael H. Drucker
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