From Corruption to Accountability: Reforming Pay-to-Play Politics in Atlanta
For decades, the city of Atlanta has faced institutionalized corruption, hindering its potential as a cultural, business, and international hub. Common Cause Georgia exposed this corruption through a new report titled “The Atlanta Way: Examining Pay-to-Play."
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.
WGCU (NPR): Gulf Coast Live: Meet the new Executive Director of Common Cause Florida, a nonpartisan nonprofit that works to uphold the core values of American democracy
Common Cause Florida is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that has been working for nearly 50 years to uphold the core values of American democracy, including an open, accountable government that is of, by, and for the people. They focus on issues around voting, and ensuring that every vote counts, that every eligible voter gets their chance to have a say, and that our elections represent the will of the people.
Our guest today, Amy Keith, started working for Common Cause Florida about a year and a half ago as Florida...
Colorado Newsline (Op-Ed): To protect our democracy, Donald Trump must be barred from the Colorado ballot
Following this ruling, Colorado Common Cause and former Colorado Secretary of State Mary Estill Buchanan filed an amicus brief in the Colorado Supreme Court asserting that former President Donald Trump should be excluded from the ballot under the 14th Amendment for his role in the January 6th insurrection.
Specifically, Common Cause’s amicus brief urges that the Court affirm the findings of the District Court that Donald Trump engaged in insurrection against the Constitution of the United States, and that the Court reverse...
Emma Steiner, Information Accountability Project manager at the watchdog group Common Cause, said the Albert plays a role in a broader far-right conspiracy theory about “the role of connection to the internet at polling places.”
“It’s all part of this broader narrative that election workers are conspiring against voters, and that voting machines cannot be trusted,” Steiner noted.
In actuality, the sensors are passive devices that listen for known intrusions on a county’s internet network, said Susannah...
Santa Fe New Mexican (Editorial): Increase the alcohol tax and save lives: It’s that simple
It’s no wonder New Mexico hasn’t raised the excise tax on alcohol over the past 40 years. A report from citizens’ interest group Common Cause New Mexico lays out just why legislators are so reluctant to tax alcohol, both as a means of raising revenue and to reduce drinking. Called “Still Under the Influence,” the report successfully — as it intends — “connects the dots” from contributions to policy outcome.
In 2023 alone, liquor lobbyists spent $74,968 on entertaining and wining and dining legislators,...
KUNM (NPR): Advocates for drawing fairer voting maps will try again to take the job away from NM lawmakers
Dede Feldman, former Democratic state Senator and advocate with Common Cause New Mexico, said on New Mexico in Focus that the current process is inherently partisan.
“The Legislature is always going to fall into the trap of having the majority party draw the map that they like to maximize their influence,” she said.
Detroit Free Press: Whitmer signs bills implementing Proposal 1
"We're pleased to see Governor Whitmer sign this long overdue ethics reform into law—but ultimately, the law falls short of voters' expectations," said Quentin Turner, director of Common Cause Michigan, an organization seeking to promote greater government accountability. "Despite overwhelming, bi-partisan support for greater transparency from our elected officials, lawmakers weakened the law to shield themselves from public scrutiny."
PolitiFact – Half True: Wisconsin Republicans are backing “a nonpartisan redistricting plan based off the Iowa Model. … Republicans, Democrats, and the Governor pushed this plan last time redistricting happened in 2020.”
Jay Heck, executive director of Common Cause Wisconsin, pointed to the change in support of the Iowa model by Republican lawmakers.
"The short answer is that very few Republicans and certainly not Tusler ever supported any version of the Iowa model legislation before Sept. 11, 2023 -- the date Robin Vos announced his plan," Heck told PolitiFact Wisconsin.
Common Cause is a nonpartisan national group with state chapters devoted to fighting for reforms to gerrymandering, political spending and other issues.
Reuters: Voter advocates, conservative activists brace for 2024 election showdowns
Ahead of the election, officials can avoid some of the chaos that fraud-chasing poll watchers created in 2020 by setting clear rules and educating the public about the way tabulation processes, such as signature verification, normally work, said Suzanne Almeida, who leads political violence prevention and response work at the non-partisan Common Cause.
National Voting in Prison Coalition Praises the Landmark Introduction of Inclusive Democracy Act of 2023
In a landmark move to expand voting rights and bolster democratic participation, Representative Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) and Senator Peter Welch (VT) today introduced the Inclusive Democracy Act of 2023. This groundbreaking legislation seeks to eliminate the discriminatory practice of felony disenfranchisement for federal elections, ensuring that all Americans, regardless of a criminal conviction, have the fundamental right to vote.
Inclusive Democracy Act Would End Felony Disenfranchisement
Today, Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) and Sen. Peter Welch (D-VT) introduced the Inclusive Democracy Act of 2023, a bill to end felony disenfranchisement. This groundbreaking legislation seeks to eliminate the discriminatory practice of felony disenfranchisement for federal elections, ensuring that all Americans, regardless of a criminal conviction, have the fundamental right to vote.
Denver Post: Will Trump be on Colorado’s 2024 ballot? State Supreme Court takes on the case
Several law professors as well as Colorado Common Cause and the Constitutional Accountability Center, which advocates for a progressive reading of the founding document, urged the state’s justices to bar Trump from the state’s ballot.
The filing from Common Cause, a government watchdog group, called it “a great credit to prior generations of American political leaders” that the disqualification clause of the Constitution had so rarely been invoked — but argued this case rose to that standard.
