Election officials across Wisconsin are bracing for a difficult transition as the state rushes into place new rules for voting signed into law by Gov. Scott Walker Wednesday — including a controversial measure requiring voters to use photo IDs. Passage of the controversial law, which has been discussed by Republicans for more than a decade, means…
Republicans on the Committee on House Administration have voted to eliminate the independent commission that was established to address election problems after the contested 2000 presidential contest between George W. Bush and Al Gore. The U.S. Election Assistance Commission, established by the Help America Vote Act of 2002, has disbursed more than $3 billion in…
An effort by House Republicans to close the Election Assistance Commission cleared its first obstacle Wednesday. After some limited Democratic opposition, the House Administration Committee approved a bill that would remove funding from the EAC and transfer much of its responsibilities to the Federal Election Commission. The bill, which was approved by voice vote, is expected…
I believe that the Governor should follow-through on his promise to veto any election legislation that lacks broad bi-partisan support and should take a stand to protect the right to vote. At a first glance, the requirement asking eligible voters to show a government-issued photo ID before being allowed to vote seems reasonable. After all,…
When Republican Gov. Nikki Haley strode out to the podium as The Black Eyed Peas song “I Gotta Feeling” pumped through a PA system in the background and her entourage began a slow, rolling clap, clap, clap before she sat down to sign perhaps one of the strictest voter ID laws in the nation, it…
Parliament has Wednesday given the nod to compel the executive facilitate the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission develop a modern electronic system. The system will legalize electronic voter registration in all polling stations in the country up to the national level in readiness for electronic voting come 2012. The motion sponsored by Karachuonyo MP Eng. James Rege, unanimously…
The Election Commission (EC) is set to introduce electronic voting machines (EVM) in the coming general elections to stop malpractices during polling but the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party, headed by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia has already rejected the plan. Despite BNP’s rejection, the Election Commission will start a series of dialogues with registered political…
The Republican governor of Wisconsin signed a bill on Wednesday that will require voters in the state to show photo identification when they go to the polls. The measure, which Democrats characterize as a voter suppression effort but Republicans defend as a protection against fraud at the polls, will take partial effect just as nine…
Senior citizens who don’t drive and University of Wisconsin students who depend on their student IDs to vote are among those who could be turned away from the polls on election days. Gov. Scott Walker on Wednesday signed into law a bill requiring voters to show some form of photo identification — such as a…
Wisconsin voters will be required to show identification at the polls before casting a ballot. Gov. Scott Walker signed the voter ID bill into law on Wednesday. … The Government Accountability Board is already gearing up, preparing a $650,000 for public education campaign. “We will be working on developing billboards and television commercials and other sorts of…
Wonder which legislator did such a pitifully poor job writing a bill to spell out how a new House member should be chosen in Nevada in case of a midterm vacancy? Look no further than former Assembly Speaker Richard Perkins, D-Las Vegas. In 2003, he sponsored Assembly Bill 344. But Perkins, now a lobbyist, thought so…
The state’s candidate filing deadline and primary election runoff date would be changed under legislation the Texas House has overwhelmingly approved. The filing deadline would move up from January of the election year to December, and runoffs would change from April to late May.
The state board of elections wants Montgomery County election officials to have more training in using electronic poll books and provisional ballots to prevent a repeat of mishaps that occurred in November’s elections.
The state board on Wednesday signed off on a letter censuring Montgomery County Registrar Randy Wertz and the three members of the county electoral board who were serving during the Nov. 2, 2010, election, when some voters were allowed to cast ballots without having their registration verified. The letter formalizes the state board’s April 29 decision to issue a censure based on findings by the state attorney general’s office.
State and local officials in South Dakota praised new voting technology and methods used for the first time in Tuesday’s school board election in Sioux Falls. The election was the first in the state to use electronic poll books and voting centers. The electronic poll books replace the large paper volumes of voters’ names and…
Election officials who subvert the process of free and fair polls will face tough punishment if amendments proposed by a House committee are passed. The Constitutional Implementation Oversight Committee has proposed that officials found guilty of interfering with elections be sentenced to three years in jail and fined Sh1 million.
The Election Commission (EC) has been urged to introduce finger or thumbprint readers in all future elections in the country to prevent fraud. Sabah DAP Kepayan branch chief Stephen Jacob Jimbangan said the EC should consider implementing the proposal in the coming general election to ensure clean and fair polls.
A ‘No’ (to the introduction of divorce) result in the upcoming referendum will put the principles of tolerance and diversity at stake, said EU and International Affairs spokesperson for Alternattiva Demokratika Arnold Cassola, yesterday. He was speaking during a press conference held outside the university gates. AD reminded people that Malta joined the EU in…
Tennessee: Bill wipes out voter safeguards in Tennessee | The Tennessean In 2008, the Tennessee General Assembly voted almost unanimously to make elections more secure, dependable and trustworthy by requiring a verifiable paper trail for each vote. The step was long overdue — more than 30 states already have such security measures. But three years…
After an eight-year quest by GOP officials, Gov. Scott Walker will sign a bill Wednesday requiring voters to show photo ID at the polls. But the measure costing more than $7 million in new spending and lost revenue could still face a legal challenge as opponents mulled over the possibility of suing to block it…
In 2008, the Tennessee General Assembly voted almost unanimously to make elections more secure, dependable and trustworthy by requiring a verifiable paper trail for each vote. The step was long overdue — more than 30 states already have such security measures. But three years later, secure elections in Tennessee remain at risk, and voters may…
Wisconsin will soon have the what’s arguably the nation’s most restrictive voter ID law. The bill was passed through the the Republican-led Senate late last week and is expected be signed into law by Gov. Scott Walker on Wednesday. Voter rights advocates are worried that the new bill will keep some of the Democratic party’s…
With the stroke of a pen today, Gov. Scott Walker will officially solve a problem that we don’t have. If you listen to Walker and some fellow governors, they’re protecting the integrity of elections and preventing voter fraud. If you ask most everyone else, it’s a slick way of making it more difficult for people to…
Jane L. Corwin this afternoon obtained a court order from State Supreme Court Justice Russell P. Buscaglia barring a certification of a winner in the special 26th Congressional District race pending a show-cause hearing before him later this week. The Buffalo News obtained a copy of the show-cause order Buscaglia signed this morning based on a…
Ohioans would see a shorter early voting period under a proposal Tuesday that cleared the Senate in this traditionally presidential swing state. The Republican-led Senate voted 23-10 along party lines to pass the plan, despite Democrats’ objections that parts of the bill could lead to longer lines and discourage people from participating in elections. Supporters argue…
A bill overhauling Ohio election law cleared the Senate today over Democratic objections, and Senate leaders said they did not expect major problems meshing their plan with one passed last week by the House. Voters would get less time to vote early, online voter registration would be developed and a handful of counties, including Franklin,…
Ohioans would have less time to vote absentee and early, and counties would be barred from mass-mailing applications for ballots to registered voters under a bill that cleared the Senate Tuesday. Senate Bill 148, passed strictly with Republican support, seeks to reduce the number of last-resort provisional ballots cast on Election Day and sets statewide…
A fire that destroyed 10,000 Harris County voting machines last August was the result of an electrical short, not arson, said Kevin Brolan, acting deputy chief of the Houston Fire Department’s arson division. The fire, coming as it did just weeks before the start of early voting last fall, gave rise to speculation of arson with a…
The filling period is about to begin for major political party candidates interested in running in Nevada’s special election for the 2nd Congressional District seat. But filing doesn’t guarantee a spot on the Sept. 13 ballot, because that decision remains with the Nevada Supreme Court. Secretary of State Ross Miller said declarations of candidacy will be…
Republican Rep. Dean Heller’s appointment to the U.S. Senate this month created a novel situation — Nevada has never had to replace a member of the House of Representatives in the middle of a term. As a result, a controversy quickly developed over how to replace Heller because Nevada law doesn’t specifically state how a…
If only Secretary of State Dean Heller had written regulations for a House special election, we wouldn’t have such controversy over filling Sen. Dean Heller’s seat. But Heller did not, as a 2003 law instructed, write any rules, so now we have chaos, thanks to a Carson City judge’s stunning decision last week that overturned…