A new report released today by the Center for American Progress’ Liz Kennedy and Rob Griffin, along with voting experts Tova Wang and Professor Paul Gronke, provides a demographic and geographic portrait of how Oregon’s automatic voter registration system (AVR) — the first in the nation — has expanded the state’s electorate and registered hundreds of thousands of eligible citizens to vote. The findings of this exclusive new analysis provide strong evidence in favor of AVR, not only given the increase in people registered to vote and voters, but also how the program has succeeded in making Oregon’s voter rolls more representative of the state’s population by registering younger, less urban, lower-income, and more ethnically diverse individuals. The report is accompanied by a robust set of graphics and charts as well as a video and an interactive map that brings the story to life by showcasing the regions and communities that benefited the most from AVR, displaying both the percentage of AVR registrants in an area as well as their participation rates on election day.
“Automatic voter registration is undeniably the next common-sense step in creating an efficient, secure and modern voter registration system for American voters in the 21st century,” said Liz Kennedy, director of democracy and government reform at the Center for American Progress, and a co-author of the report.
“The benefits we’ve found from Oregon’s program include expanding the electorate so it’s more representative of the population and removing barriers to participation, particularly for younger Americans. Our democracy is strengthened and election integrity is improved when more eligible voters can have their voices heard at the ballot box.”
Full Article: The Skanner News – New Report Analyzes Impact of Oregon’s Automatic Voter Registration.