National: Redistricting Wars – The hidden story of the 2012 elections | City Journal

Every ten years, after the U.S. Census releases its latest population reports, most of the 50 states begin the complicated process of drawing new election districts. As you might expect, partisan bickering and maneuvering inevitably distort things. So a decade ago, Arizona voters decided to end the partisanship by removing the redistricting process from the state legislature and placing it in the hands of an independent commission. Last year, the new commission, consisting of two Democrats, two Republicans, and a nonpartisan chair, got to work on its first set of maps after the 2010 census. Unfortunately, the results were anything but nonpartisan. The independent chair sided consistently with the two Democrats, essentially giving them control over the makeup of the congressional and state legislative maps. Lawsuits were launched, along with a push by Arizona’s Republican governor, Jan Brewer, to impeach the chair. The new maps, if let stand, “could reshape the state’s political landscape” in the Democrats’ favor, the Arizona Republic reported. Already, state lawmakers are looking at doing away with the commission or significantly changing it.

National: Republicans hand first hearing on Voting Rights Act to opponent of Voting Rights Act | MSNBC

House Republicans are diving into the battle over renewing the Voting Rights Act, scheduling their first hearing on the issue for this Thursday. The hearing, confirmed by a GOP source and the House Judiciary Committee, marks the GOP’s first tangible legislative attempt to respond to the Supreme Court’s Shelby decision in June, which invalidated part of the VRA. The move suggests that Republican leaders, who mostly offered evasive statements after the Shelby decision, have decided they should engage some kind of legislative process to discuss the ruling. In fact, the hearing will come just one day after the Senate Democrats’ first hearing on the VRA. The Senate Judiciary Committee will hear testimony on the VRA’s history from strong backers of the legislation, Rep. John Lewis and Rep. James Sensenbrenner. The move also shows, however, that some House Republicans are aiming to kill any voting rights reform. That’s because Republicans handed the hearing to Trent Franks, one of just 33 Republicans who voted against the last VRA re-authorization in 2006. (A total of 390 House members voted for it.)

Editorials: Renewing voting rights — with Roberts in mind | Ari Melber/The Great Debate (Reuters)

Should Congress accept Chief Justice John Roberts’ invitation? Roberts, in his dramatic voting rights ruling last month, said Congress has a duty to update Jim Crow-era civil rights laws for a post-Jim Crow world. In Shelby County v. Holder, the Supreme Court basically found that Congress committed an unforced error by renewing the Voting Rights Act without updating its formula for patrolling discrimination against voters. Now Congress can finish what the court started. As the Senate holds its first hearing in response to Shelby on Wednesday, with the House of Representatives due to hold one on Thursday, there are indications that a precise piece of legislation could pass even this divided Congress. Here are two strong ways to renew the Voting Rights Act. The first thing Congress can do is update the law’s formula for hunting down discrimination. A clear bill can begin by answering the core question in Roberts’ opinion: Is there a better baseline for discrimination than the literacy tests and voter turnout numbers from the 1960s?

Alaska: Redistricting Board adopts revised voting district map | Alaska Dispatch

A sense of relief was palpable on Sunday afternoon as the Alaska Redistricting Board adopted a revised voting district map, potentially ending the board’s seven-month saga of drawing and redrawing the state’s voter districts. The map in place, used in the 2012 elections, was found to be unconstitutional by the courts. Alaska’s voting districts are redrawn every 10 years following the U.S. Census, but the board was forced to go back to the drawing board after its last attempt was rejected by the Alaska Supreme Court, which said that before making adjustments to protect minorities, districts must be socially and economically integrated, as well as compact. However, with the U.S. Supreme Court’s rejection of a key provision of the Voting Rights Act in June, the redistricting board’s process was somewhat streamlined.

Florida: New voting equipment checking in for Brevard County | Florida Today

Brevard County voters will be using new equipment starting in November. The County Commission this week unanimously approved the $1.5 million purchase. Supervisor of Elections Lori Scott said Brevard currently has among the oldest election equipment in the state, dating back to 1999. Brevard was one of the early adopters that year of “optical scan technology” to read the ballots. She says that equipment now is “aging and outdated,” and the vendor that made it is out of business, so spare parts are difficult to come by. “We can’t continue to limp through like that,” Scott said. With the new equipment, voters will continue to mark a paper ballot. But the new equipment that will collect and tabulate those ballots will make it easier for election workers to spot any problems with improperly completed ballots. “This is a much more user-friendly unit,” Scott said.

Florida: Counties reorganize precincts to help reduce voting lines | Miami Herald

Broward and Miami-Dade elections officials are reorganizing hundreds of voting precincts with the goal of reducing the long lines of voters that plagued last November’s presidential elections and embarrassed the state. In Broward, Brenda Snipes, the county supervisor of elections, started the process in June, aiming to complete the work by September — more than a year in advance of the 2014 gubernatorial election. In Miami-Dade, the county’s elections office expects to present a new precinct plan to county commissioners in early 2014, spokeswoman Christina White said. In Broward, Snipes is an elected officer, so county commissioners don’t have to approve her plan and she has no immediate plans for public input. Miami-Dade had planned on reorganizing its precincts before the 2012 election, but delayed it out of a concern that voters assigned to new precincts would be confused on a presidential election day. Instead, voters at many precincts stood in line for several hours to wait to vote. Both counties, which have more than 1 million voters each, have about 800 precincts. Some are combined in the same location.

Kansas: Kobach proposes rule change on proof-of-citizenship requirement to register to vote | Kansas City Kansan

Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach is proposing a change to the law he pushed through the Legislature that requires proof of citizenship to register to vote. The Kansas proof-of-citizenship law requires people who register to vote in the state for the first time to provide a birth certificate, passport or other document. But since it went into effect Jan. 1, more than 11,000 people who have attempted to register to vote are in “suspense,” meaning they are not yet qualified to vote because of lack of proof of citizenship.

Montana: State Legislators Aim to Check Dark Money Spending | PBS

After enduring one of the most expensive — and vicious — campaigns in Montana history, a handful of state senators and representatives are preparing an attack on dark money. They’re working on a ballot initiative that would let Montana voters decide whether nonprofit groups should disclose at least some of their donors. State politicians have grown increasingly concerned that outside groups have too much influence on their politics, said Sen. Jim Peterson, a Republican who has led the push for the ballot initiative. Peterson had proposed a Senate bill requiring more disclosure earlier this year, but it died in a House committee. “Dark money supporters use these nonprofit organizations, 501(c)4s in particular, to hide behind a curtain of secrecy so they can play in these elections anonymously,” he said. “And voters don’t like it. Candidates don’t like it. I don’t like it.”

North Carolina: Paper ballots bill becomes a study committee | News & Record

State Rep. Bert Jones, R-Rockingham, has been pushing this session to force N.C. counties that use electronic voting machines back onto paper ballots. His House Bill 607 initially required this shift, but the bill was amended this week to simply call for a year-long study of the issue, as well as a moratorium on new voting machine purchases in the interim. That bill passed the House last night, with Jones’ support. It moves to the Senate, but House members have said repeatedly this session that the Senate hasn’t been willing to pass study bills. Sometimes these studies don’t accomplish much, but they can cost a little money.

US Virgin Islands: Elections board ends group’s review of ballots | Virgin Islands Daily News

At its monthly meeting Thursday, the St. Thomas-St. John District Board of Elections voted to bar a group of residents from reviewing tally sheets and paper ballots from the last election. The board took the action on the basis that the group – which has alleged irregularities and fraud in the Elections System – is conducting a full-fledged recount. At the meeting, board member Harry Daniel made a motion to “discontinue access for the purpose of counting the ballots.” Board Chairman Arturo Watlington Jr. and board members Lawrence Boschulte and Alecia Wells voted along with Daniels in favor of the motion. Board members Claudette Georges and Wilma Marsh-Monsanto, who herself is part of the group reviewing the documents, voted against the motion. Board member Lydia Hendricks was not present for the vote.

Virginia: A bid to restore rights to nonviolent felons | Associated Press

The door opened Monday for tens of thousands of nonviolent felons in Virginia to regain the right to vote, with state officials outlining the steps each will have to take to recapture their basic civil rights. Gov. Bob McDonnell has said up to 100,000 disenfranchised felons ultimately could be added to the voter rolls, serve on a jury or hold political office. “For past offenders, our goal is to grant civil rights back to as many as possible,” McDonnell said in a statement. “This is the right thing to do for all Virginians to help make the commonwealth a safer and better place.” A former prosecutor and attorney general, McDonnell said offering past offenders to opportunity to resume their lives as productive citizens, “we can better keep them from committing another crime and returning to prison.” He called that step a move to thwart “prison expansion” and to promote “smart government.”

Virginia: Details on nonviolent felons’ rights plan due today | Richmond Times Dispatch

Some of the advocates who cheered Gov. Bob McDonnell’s announcement in May that he would automatically restore the voting rights of nonviolent felons are now concerned that the initiative might not have as big an impact as they thought — at least not right away. Others say they’re just happy that progress is being made. Administration officials are expected to announce details of the program today, the day it takes effect. McDonnell originally said that about 100,000 disenfranchised felons might be added to the voter rolls, but advocates for civil rights and inmates are bracing for the likelihood that only a fraction of that pool will have their rights restored in time for the November election. “People are concerned the reality is not going to match the rhetoric,” said Claire Guthrie Gastañaga, executive director of the ACLU of Virginia.

Bhutan: Election Commission completes polls process, hands over MP list to King | DNA

Bhutan’s election authorities today successfully completed the process to elect a new Parliament after the country’s second national polls saw the main opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) storm to power. Bhutan Election Commission (BEC) formally submitted the list of 47 winners of the country’s second national elections to King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, culminating the first stage of the democratic process in the Himalayan nation in which Tshering Tobgay-led PDP secured a two-thirds majority. On Saturday, the PDP won the national elections with a massive mandate and captured 32 seats. The country’s new opposition party Druk Phuensum Tshogpa will have 15 members in the House. The peaceful elections were marked by a heavy voter turnout of 80%. This is the second national polls in Bhutan after the country became a democracy in 2008 before which it was a monarchy.

Malaysia: Opposition files suit against Election Commission over election fraud | Business Standard

Malaysia’s opposition alliance today filed a suit against the country’s Election Commission, claiming fraud over the use of the indelible ink during the May 5 general elections in which the ruling coalition Barisan Nasional party secured victory. In their suit, the eight plaintiffs were the three opposition parties PAS, PKR and DAP and election candidates Dzulkefly Ahmad, M Manogaran, Saifuddin Nasution Ismail, Arifin Abd Rahman and R Abbo. They named seven defendants, with the first two being Election Commission (EC) chairman Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof and his deputy Wan Ahmad Wan Omar. The remaining defendants are members of the EC.

Editorials: Zimbabwe Electoral Commission On Course | allAfrica.com

The delays yesterday during the special voting for police and other Government officials who are likely to be deployed away from their constituencies on July 31 were a result of events, not fundamental flaws in the electoral process or its organisation. The main problem was that the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission did not have a final list of candidates, with their political affiliation, until late on Friday when the results of several court cases became known. But that final list for this weekend is the same final list for the main Election Day at the end of the month. So the ballot papers that were available for special voting are the same ballot papers that will be issued on July 31.

National: FEC engulfed in power struggle over staff independence | The Washington Post

Long-standing dysfunction at the Federal Election Commission reached a new level of personal acrimony in recent weeks, fueled by a power struggle between Republican commissioners and the agency’s top lawyer, who abruptly resigned. The battle threatens to further obstruct the work of the beleaguered commission, which is charged with policing candidates’ and political groups’ compliance with disclosure rules and other requirements of the vast campaign finance system. The fight is centered on a push by the Republican commissioners to bar FEC staff members from sharing information with federal prosecutors unless the panel — currently dominated by GOP members — gives its approval. The commission’s lone Democrat and many campaign-finance experts say the move could politicize such decisions and hamper the ability of the FEC and the Justice Department to prosecute election violations.

Editorials: The Federal Election Commission’s wrong-headed proposal to change rules | The Washington Post

Immobilized by political gridlock, the Federal Election Commission (FEC) has allowed its enforcement actions to nosedive in recent years. Now outgoing commission Vice Chairman Donald F. McGahn II, a former general counsel to the National Republican Congressional Committee, could be seeking to take advantage of a temporary 3-to-2 Republican majority on the FEC to write Republican stall tactics into agency rules. Mr. McGahn and other Republican commissioners have proposed a version of the FEC enforcement manual that would prevent the agency’s general counsel from consulting, without commission approval, publicly available information when considering an enforcement matter. It would also severely restrict information-sharing between the FEC and the Justice Department.

Alaska: Redistricting Board releases latest voting boundaries | Alaska Dispatch

After being sent back to the drawing board by the Alaska Supreme Court last winter, the Alaska Redistricting Board released a new plan this week that did away with some creative groupings, especially for southeast Alaska. The board plans to vote on the plan on Sunday. Under the past plan, new lines were created for House Districts 36 and 37 of Southwest Alaska. House District 36, represented by Bryce Edgmon of Dillingham, stretched from the western coast of Cook Inlet, across the Illiamna Lake region to Bristol Bay, then north into the Yukon and Kuskokwim area. Edgmon no longer represented the Alaska Peninsula or the Aleutian, Shumagin, and Pribilof Islands communities — which were in House District 37.

Colorado: Gessler hires lawyer with ties to former firm to force Hickenlooper on recall elections | Denver Post

Republican Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler has hired an attorney with ties to his old law firm to file a bold court order against Gov. John Hickenlooper in an effort to force the governor to set election dates in the recalls of two Democratic state lawmakers. In a writ of mandamus, filed in Denver District Court over the weekend by attorney Steven Klenda, Gessler asks for an “expedited/emergency hearing” because Hickenlooper, a Democrat, has “refused to perform his constitutional duty to set a date for an election to recall” of Senate President John Morse, D-Colorado Springs, and Sen. Angela Giron, D-Pueblo. Colorado’s constitution says that an election date must come 60 days after the secretary of state’s office certifies recall petitions — which came on July 5. But Hickenlooper’s office is holding off until a Wednesday court hearing where a District Court judge will decide on a preliminary injuction that seeks to order Hickenlooper not be required to set an election date until the judicial process in the recall battle has ended.

Florida: State asks federal court to dismiss voting rights suit | Bradenton Herald

When the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the heart of the Voting Rights Act last month, it cleared the way for Gov. Rick Scott’s administration to resume its controversial effort to remove potential noncitizens from voter rolls. The high court June 25 invalidated a formula used for decades by federal officials to approve changes to voting laws in states and counties to protect minorities from discrimination, a review known as preclearance. The federal scrutiny no longer applies to Monroe and four other Florida counties: Hillsborough, Collier, Hardee and Hendry. A Hispanic advocacy group, Mi Familia Vota Education Fund, sued last year on behalf of two Tampa voters, calling the state’s list of suspected non-U.S. citizen voters unreliable with a potential to disenfranchise voters, especially Hispanics and African-Americans such as Murat Limage, 45, of Tampa. He received a letter from the county elections office that questioned his citizenship, even though he was a naturalized U.S. citizen, the suit alleges. Some county election supervisors also questioned the accuracy of the state data. Removal efforts stalled a few weeks before the 2012 general election.

Ohio: Federal judge hears case on Ohio ballot, ID rules | Dayton Daily News

Voter advocates asked a federal judge Friday to extend a court order that they say ensures that broad definitions of voter identification requirements would remain in place in the perennial presidential battleground of Ohio. Attorneys for the state’s top election official said he’s committed to the more lenient voter ID definitions, unless the Legislature changes the law. At issue is whether a 2010 expiring court agreement that governs provisional ballots and forms of voter ID in Ohio should continue. An attorney representing homeless voters told the federal court in Columbus that without the decree, the state would return to a “Wild West” system in which county election boards could apply vague standards unequally and unfairly to legitimate voters.

Ohio: Advocates ask to extend voter-ID order | The Columbus Dispatch

Voter advocates asked a federal judge yesterday to extend a court order that they say ensures that broad definitions of voter-identification requirements would remain in place in Ohio. Attorneys for the state’s top election official, Secretary of State Jon Husted, said he’s committed to the more-lenient voter-ID definitions, unless the legislature changes the law so the decree isn’t needed. At issue is whether an expiring 2010 court agreement that governs provisional ballots and forms of voter ID in Ohio should continue.

Pennsylvania: Voter ID law goes on trial | Associated Press

A trial set to begin Monday on the constitutionality of Pennsylvania’s voter identification law represents a major step toward a judicial ruling on whether the photo requirement should be enforced at polling places statewide or thrown out as unconstitutional. Nine days are set aside for the trial in Harrisburg in Commonwealth Court. Civil libertarians challenging the law and state officials defending it say they expect the state Supreme Court will ultimately decide the case. At issue is a voter ID law that would be one of the strictest in the nation if it is upheld but has never been enforced.

Pennsylvania: Voter ID Law Being Argued Anew to State Court Judge | Businessweek

Opponents of Pennsylvania’s voter identification law are asking a judge to overturn the Republican-backed legislation, which requires voters to show photo ID to cast a ballot. Judge Bernard McGinley of Commonwealth Court in Harrisburg will hear opening statements from attorneys for organizations including the American Civil Liberties Union on whether the law is unconstitutional and disenfranchises groups of voters including the poor and elderly. State officials were temporarily barred from enforcing the law in the November and May elections. This lawsuit is really about a bad law that is badly written,” Michael Rubin, an attorney for the plaintiffs with the firm Arnold & Porter LLP, told reporters July 11 on a media call. As many as 410,000 people, or 5 percent of Pennsylvania’s eligible electorate, might be barred from voting under the statute, according to the ACLU.

Pennsylvania: Voter ID Law Faces Lawsuit From ACLU | Stateline

The fierce battle over Pennsylvania’s voter ID law goes to trial on Monday in a state courtroom in Harrisburg. The legal fight began with a lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania and other groups in May 2012. A state judge temporarily blocked the voter ID law from affecting Election Day 2012, but only after the state Supreme Court intervened. The Pennsylvania ACLU argues the voter ID law is unconstitutional because it infringes on the right to vote and could disenfranchise voters.

Pennsylvania: Voter ID Trial Gets Underway In Pennsylvania | Huffington Post

In a trial set to start next week, lawyers from a coalition of liberal-leaning and civil rights groups will attempt to strike down a statute that requires all voters in Pennsylvania to present particular forms of photo identification before casting their ballots. The law has been the subject of controversy since the state’s Republican legislature and governor passed it in the spring of 2012. In September, a Pennsylvania judge stopped the law from going into effect, and lawyers for the plaintiffs are now hoping to wipe it from the books entirely. If they fail, Pennsylvania could become the latest state to require voters to show some form of ID at the polls, a recent trend viewed by critics as an attack on the voting rights of poor people and members of minority groups, who are less likely to possess drivers’ licenses or other forms of identification.

South Dakota: Supreme Court Decision Rolls Back Voting Rights for South Dakota Indians | ICTMN.com

When the U.S. Supreme Court used Shelby County v. Holder to kick Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act (VRA) back to Congress for a new look at who is still struggling to get to the ballot box, certain things did not change for South Dakota Indians. If they want equal access to voting in any given election cycle, they must request it, pay for it and/or go to court to litigate for it. The Supreme Court decision immediately cut loose two South Dakota counties, Shannon and Todd, which overlap the Pine Ridge and Rosebud reservations, respectively. Officials there no longer have to “preclear” changes in voting laws and procedures with the Department of Justice and prove they’re not discriminatory.

Bhutan: Opposition Party Secures Upset Victory in Elections | VoA News

Bhutan’s opposition People’s Democratic Party appears to have won an upset victory in parliamentary elections Saturday. The country’s Election Commission says on its website that the party has won at least 31 of the 47 seats being contested in the vote for parliament, while the incumbent Peace and Prosperity Party won at least 14 seats. Election Commission officials will announce the official results on Sunday. The PDP needed 24 of the 47 seats to form the next government.

Estonia: E-Voting Source Code Made Public | ERR

The Electronic Voting Committee yesterday revealed the source code of its server software, opening up technical analysis of the e-elections system to the public. “This is the next step toward a transparent system. The idea, which was the result of joint discussion between numerous Estonian IT experts and the Electronic Voting Committee, was implemented today. We welcome the fact that experts representing civil society want to contribute to the development and security of the e-elections,” said committee chairman Tarvi Martens. Although the source code was accessible before, it required the requester to sign a confidentiality contract. Estonia’s e-voting system has been used for five elections – including general, local and European Parliament elections – since it was introduced in 2005. In the 2011 general elections, 24.3 percent of the votes cast were done so by e-vote, according to the National Electoral Committee. A new feature at the coming October local government elections is an Android-based electronic receipt of sorts that allows a voter to verify if their e-ballot went through properly.

Estonia: E-voting system source code releases in push for transparency, security | Gigaom

For six years, Estonians haven’t had to set foot in a polling place or wait in line to cast their votes for President — instead, they can do it online. And on Thursday, the country’s Electronic Voting Committee released the entire source code of its voting server software on open-source platform GitHub — a move that not only gives Estonians a glimpse into the workings of their e-voting system, but that also gives them a chance to help toughen it up from a security perspective. The Estonian e-voting process is based on the country’s identity card, which is mandatory and issued when a citizen is 15 years old. The card has a built-in electronic authentication system that allows secure voting online from any computer, and each citizen is allowed to submit and change their vote until Election Day. At the last Parliamentary Election in 2011, one in four people chose to cast their ballot via e-vote. While there isn’t enough data to conclude whether e-voting has raised voter turnout overall in the country, the country’s electoral committee views the process as successful.