The Voting News Daily: Cost of Voter ID, Mail-In Voting in CO, New Push for DC Voting Rights
AR: New ballots are not ready | The Baxter Bulletin
Touch-screen voting may be on hold in Baxter County and other counties across the state. Baxter County Clerk Rhonda Porter said the county has not received electronic ballots from the state for its iVotronics touch-screen voting machines. Porter said early voting begins Monday and paper ballots will be available to voters who want to vote early. “No matter what, it won’t affect people’s ability to vote,” Porter said. Arkansas Secretary of State Charlie Daniels said some counties will not be able to use their touch-screen voting machines during the early voting period, but the problem should be fixed in time for the primary election May 23. Read More
CO: State could soon have mostly mail-in elections – 9NEWS.com Denver
Colorado’s future elections would be mostly conducted by mail under a proposal set to be debated at the State Capitol. House Bill 1131 would require eligible voters to receive their ballot at their home and they could vote either by sending it in, dropping it off or surrendering it at what’s being called a “service center” in the eight days leading up to and on Election Day in exchange for a ballot they could then cast in person. “The goal is to recognize that 60 to 70 percent of our population is already requesting a permanent mail-in ballot,” said Rep. Carole Murray (R-Castle Rock), the former Douglas County Clerk and Recorder and the primary sponsor of the legislation. “What this does is extend that to 100 percent of our population in all elections.” It is estimated the proposal could save county clerks statewide a minimum of $12 million. Colorado lawmakers changed the law before the 2010 primary election to allow counties the choice of holding that election by mail. Numerous counties did so and saved significant money in the process. Read More
CO: Under scrutiny, Gessler brushes off critics – KWGN
In just his third week on the job, Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler has already attracted more news coverage — and controversy — than his predecessor did in two years. Or so it seems. Democratic critics have been relentlessly attacking Gessler for his plan to continue doing legal work for his old law firm, which specializes in election law — a potential conflict of interest for the officer charged with overseeing elections for the state. Read More
DC: Advocates Renew Fight For D.C. Voting Rights : NPR
The District of Columbia does not have a full vote in Congress, despite having more than half a million residents. But what many may not know is that every law passed by the city’s council is submitted for congressional review, including the recent same-sex marriage bill which went into effect last year. Host Michel Martin speaks about the latest in the fight to gain voting rights for residents of D-C with R. Clarke Cooper. Cooper is Executive Director of the Log Cabin Republicans, a group that advocates for marriage equality in the District.