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Groups Urge Census Changes to Accurately Count Prison Populations For Redistricting

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Groups Urge Census Changes to Accurately Count Prison Populations For Redistricting

Today, Common Cause and the Prison Policy Initiative urged the U.S. Census Bureau to change how it counts prison populations each decade. The Bureau’s use of differential privacy, the intentional infusion of inaccurate information into population data, creates unnecessary miscounts in data used by state and local officials for redistricting. In a letter to Director Robert L. Santos and other senior officials, the groups emphasized that the populations of correctional facilities are already publicly available and that differential privacy is...

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David Vance

National Media Strategist
dvance@commoncause.org
240-605-8600

Katie Scally

Communications Director
kscally@commoncause.org
408-205-1257

Ariana Marmolejo

Regional Communications Strategist (West)
amarmolejo@commoncause.org

Jennifer Garcia

Regional Communications Strategist (South)
jgarcia@commoncause.org

Kenny Colston

Regional Communications Strategist (Midwest)
kcolston@commoncause.org


Common Cause’s network of national and state democracy reform experts are frequent media commentators. To talk with one of our experts, please reach out to any member of the press team above.

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Washington Post: The million-dollar question on the election’s eve: Who is left to vote?

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Washington Post: The million-dollar question on the election’s eve: Who is left to vote?

“We are confident we’ll see record turnout here by the end of the election night,” said Quentin Turner, who runs the voter protection operation in Michigan for Common Cause, a nonpartisan group. “We are a little above 50 percent of our 2016 total in early votes alone. Many folks in Michigan want to vote in person; it’s an important tradition here.”

Associated Press: With post-election lawsuits looming, a final push for votes

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Associated Press: With post-election lawsuits looming, a final push for votes

“Make sure, regardless what happens with litigation, that your vote is counted,” said Sylvia Albert, director of voting and elections for Common Cause, which called for Barrett to recuse herself from any potential election litigation. “To me, it seems a clear voter-suppression tactic and an effort to invalidate ballots” that a party does not think are for them.

“I would hope the court would see that as an obvious power grab, but the reality is, we don’t know what the court would do,” Albert said.

Washington Post: Polling places are unable to avoid the politics of mask-wearing

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Washington Post: Polling places are unable to avoid the politics of mask-wearing

Jay Heck, director of the voter-rights group Common Cause in Wisconsin, said fear of the virus is a huge issue heading into Election Day because coronavirus cases are spiking to an average of 4,500 new diagnoses a day in the state.

President Trump’s campaigning there has drawn large crowds recently.

“Trump and Pence have been coming continually, and their rallies are all not requiring people to wear masks,” he said. “[People might say,] Hey, if it’s okay to go see the president and vice president and not...

Wall Street Journal: Lawyers Prepare for Court Battles in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin

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Wall Street Journal: Lawyers Prepare for Court Battles in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin

Pennsylvania voters have requested a record number of more than 3 million absentee ballots this year. The state chapter of Common Cause, a voting-rights advocacy group, has assigned 2,000 volunteers to voting sites in 11 counties that the group believes could have election-day problems. This army of poll watchers can funnel complaints to lawyers working with Common Cause, which has been involved in pre-election lawsuits over voting laws this year.

TIME: How to Spot Disinformation Around Election Day—And What to Do About It

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TIME: How to Spot Disinformation Around Election Day—And What to Do About It

Since so many people are voting a new way this year, “some of this stuff doesn’t sound so crazy anymore,” says Jesse Littlewood, vice president of campaigns at the nonpartisan nonprofit Common Cause. “And we have unfortunately seen some bad actors weaponize that and say, ‘because of the coronavirus or because of social distancing, certain people need to vote after the election has concluded.’” Littlewood recommends consulting the nonpartisan National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS)’s website canivote.org for...

Bloomberg: What Happens to Voting When There’s a Natural Disaster

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Bloomberg: What Happens to Voting When There’s a Natural Disaster

The civic engagement group Common Cause Oregon, meanwhile, has launched a massive texting campaign in the eight most affected counties, sending out voting information and the number to their voting hotline, and trying to catch anybody who may have fallen through the cracks. Executive Director Kate Titus says they’ve reached some 300,000 people.

“One of the reasons we decided to reach out by text is because we recognize that the people we reach could have a lot going on,” she says. In fact, all the experts that Bloomberg...

NBC News: Trump asked supporters to watch the polls. How states are countering fears of intimidation.

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NBC News: Trump asked supporters to watch the polls. How states are countering fears of intimidation.

Suzanne Almeida, the interim executive director of Common Cause Pennsylvania, said "the short answer is, we’re a little bit worried about everything."

But she noted that challenged voters in Pennsylvania can get a witness to verify their identity, or vote with a provisional ballot and later prove their identity.

She said she is part of a large coalition of election protection groups that will have 2,000 volunteers on the ground monitoring the polls and "roving teams" deployed to any problem areas.

ABC News: Long lines, broken machines: Why voters should not be too worried about some poll site snafus

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ABC News: Long lines, broken machines: Why voters should not be too worried about some poll site snafus

In addition to poll workers, election offices and attorney general offices, Common Cause has a hotline, 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683), with staff who have direct lines to election officials, according to Sylvia Albert, the director of voting and elections for the non-partisan watchdog group Common Cause..

"There are tons of organizations and lawyers who are out there and we have your back," she said.

CBS News: (VIDEO) Poll Shows First-Time Voters Motivated To Vote In 2020

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CBS News: (VIDEO) Poll Shows First-Time Voters Motivated To Vote In 2020

Alyssa Canty does outreach to first-time voters for the non-partisan group Common Cause.

“They’re definitely activated, they definitely enjoy, like, voting early, or either voting by mail, so I think we will definitely see decent turnout, but it may not just be, like, on Election Day,” she said.

Ms. Magazine: What You Can Do Today to Increase Voter Turnout

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Ms. Magazine: What You Can Do Today to Increase Voter Turnout

“Normally we get 6,000 volunteers. This time, so far we have upwards of 40,000 volunteers,” said Sylvia Albert, who is the director of voting and elections with Common Cause. “It shows real interest and desire by the American people to ensure a free, fair and safe election.”

BuzzFeed: Six Republican Secretaries Of State Tried To Stop Facebook’s Effort To Register Millions Of Voters

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BuzzFeed: Six Republican Secretaries Of State Tried To Stop Facebook’s Effort To Register Millions Of Voters

Jesse Littlewood, vice president for campaigns at Common Cause, called the effort by the secretaries of state a “remarkable” attempt to “strong-arm Facebook.”

“It’s troubling to see those overseeing elections try to stop what appears to be a successful project to register voters,” he said.

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