837 Search Results Containing "voting"
Washington Post: Courts view GOP fraud claims skeptically as Democrats score key legal victories over mail voting
“The positive thing that we can say is that the majority of election officials in this country have moved to provide more access to the ballot,” said Sylvia Albert, director of Common Cause’s voting and elections program, on a call with reporters last week. Albert said voters have benefited from a general shift toward mail voting this year but added that a clear winner in the legal battles has not emerged. “I would actually say it’s a mixed bag, and that’s the reflection of the decentralization of our election system. So while state judges have actually found generally more in favor of expanding voting rights, federal courts have generally deferred to the wants of the local election officials,” she said.
Found in: Common Cause
HuffPost: Mail-In Voting Rules Still Up In The Air As Republicans Appeal Election Decisions
“The federal judiciary is not being a great avenue for relief,” said Sylvia Albert, director of voting and elections at Common Cause, a nonpartisan nonprofit. “Some state courts have provided more. And that’s where you’ve seen more orders for expanded access.” ... The Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s ruling extending the ballot receipt deadline could be the first case to go before the U.S. Supreme Court. Normally, decisions made by a state’s highest court are the last word on election matters. “What this appeal is saying is that that state court got it so wrong that it can’t stand,” said Albert, adding, “That’s unusual.”
Found in: Common Cause
Voting Access Coalition Calls for Executive Order to Count Ballots Mailed by Election Day, Received by November 6
A coalition of 20 community and voting rights groups called for Governor Gina M. Raimondo to issue an executive order allowing the state Board of Elections to count ballots that are postmarked by November 3rd and received by November 6th, and to count any ballots received by mail that arrive on November 4th.
Found in: Common Cause Rhode Island
North Carolina Voting Rights Groups say man tied to a Georgia company tried to create chaos in election
"This guy was part of a goal to cast doubt on the integrity of the election in North Carolina. Create chaos," Phillips said.
Found in: Common Cause North Carolina
New York Times: Trump Supporters Disrupt Early Voting in Virginia
“In Virginia, the safe zone around the polling location is only 40 feet, but that safe zone is for campaigning and trying to change a person’s vote,” said Sylvia Albert, director of voting and elections at Common Cause, a voting rights group. “Outside of that, in general, there are laws against intimidation. So I would say that even if they have a right to campaign, which they absolutely do, they do not have a right to interfere with someone’s right to vote or to intimidate them.” “To me, this went beyond campaigning and they should have been removed.” ... Ms. Albert added that the demonstration underscored the need for counties and municipalities to develop contingency voting plans for all situations. “Contingency plans aren’t only if there is a hurricane or a pandemic,” she said. “It’s also if something is making my polling location inaccessible to voters. That could be power going down, that could be people protesting and blocking the door.”
Found in: Common Cause
Statement of Voting Rights Advocates in Response to Pennsylvania Supreme Court Ruling
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ruled today that state law allows county bureaus of elections to set up drop boxes and satellite offices to accept mail and absentee ballots. The Court also found that, because of problems documented with the postal service, ballots that arrive by 5 p.m. on Friday, November 6, will be counted, provided there is no evidence that the ballots were mailed after Election Day.
Found in: Common Cause Pennsylvania
GA Secretary of State Clarifies Returning Citizens’ Voting Eligibility
Georgia’s Secretary of State has added language to his website, clarifying that “outstanding monetary obligations other than fines, such as unpaid restitution, fees, costs, or surcharges” are not a barrier to voting, for people who have been convicted of a felony.
Found in: Common Cause Georgia
Common Cause NC bolsters election security work by hiring new coordinator to examine readiness of NC's voting infrastructure
Found in: Common Cause North Carolina
New York Times: What are the consequences of voting twice, anyway?
Citing all the disarray in Georgia’s elections this year, public interest groups wonder whether it was an accident. “Secretary Raffensperger has been looking for reasons to cast doubt on Georgia’s mail-in ballot system for months,” said Aunna Dennis, the executive director of Common Cause Georgia. “He would have served us all better if he had invested that time and energy into preventing the problems that occurred in June.”
Found in: Common Cause
TIME: How Donald Trump's Misinformation Campaign Against Mail-in Voting Is Undermining Faith in Democracy
“We have seen already that the President’s rhetoric is affecting the confidence that voters have in vote-by-mail, particularly, and also in elections in general,” Sylvia Albert, director of voting and elections at Common Cause, testified to Congress on Aug. 4.