Today the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) unanimously adopted the Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (VVSG) 2.0. Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (VVSG) are a set of specifications and requirements against which voting systems can be tested to determine if the systems meet required standards. The standards govern security of the voting systems, functionality and accessibility. The Help America Vote Act mandates that the EAC develop and maintain these requirements. While many states require voting systems to conform to these standards,...

The American people expect and deserve the restoration of strong ethical standards at the White House in the wake of the abuses of the Trump presidency. President-elect Biden promised reform on the campaign trail, and Common Cause, along with our allies, urged the incoming administration to take make a strong commitment to ethics and democracy reforms.

The House is poised to pass a modified COVID-19 relief package to provide assistance to Americans whose lives have been upended by the pandemic, and to bolster pillars of our democracy strained under the national health crisis. The Senate must act after refusing to move on a more robust relief package passed by the House in May. It is past time for Senate Republicans to move to help the American people instead of focusing on trying to ram through the confirmation of another Supreme Court Justice while ignoring the plight of their constituents.

The 2020 Democracy Scorecard charts the position of every Member of Congress on issues vital to the health of our democracy and shows the Senate is a "legislative graveyard" for democracy reform

Analysis shows how Connecticut’s Citizens’ Election Program shifted the balance of power to the people, diversified the legislature and led to better policies for everyday Americans in its first decade

The first duty of government is to protect its people and it is up to the people to hold that government accountable when it fails. A new report from Common Cause chronicles the Trump administration’s failed response to the COVID-19 pandemic through the lens of government accountability and the abuse of power.

Last night, 30+ organizations from the Declaration for American Democracy (DFAD) coalition urged the U.S. Senate Committee on Rules & Administration to include vital funding to bolster state and local elections officials facing unprecedented burdens in holding elections amidst the COVID-19 pandemic amidst massive budget shortfalls. In a letter organized by Common Cause to every member of the Committee yesterday, more than 30 groups emphasized the importance supporting the $3.6 billion in election funding that was included in the...

Today, Common Cause Indiana filed a federal lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a state law that strips voters of their right to petition state courts to extend polling-place hours. Common Cause Indiana v. Lawson was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana. Common Cause Indiana is being represented in the case by Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, the law firm of Eimer Stahl LLP and the national Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.

(Washington, DC) –Today, a coalition of nearly 50 organizations and media scholars joined Common Cause, PEN America, and Free Press in a letter calling on Congress to include vital funding for local news in the next stimulus package proposed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The letter explains that House and Senate leadership should consider local press an industry vital to the nation’s health, prosperity, and recovery.

Just days before the American Legislative Exchange Council’s (ALEC) annual meeting in Austin, Common Cause and the Center for Media and Democracy released a new report uncovering the recent influence of the secretive special interest lobbying group in the Texas legislature.