Five Voting Laws Needed To Protect Democracy - By Marc Elias, elections lawyer extraordinaire

[diva77]

https://www.democracydocket.com/opinion/five-voting-laws-needed-to-protect-democracy/

By Marc Elias
February 8, 2023

Thanks to a strong showing in 2022, Democrats gained full control over governments in 17 states. This is more so-called “trifectas” — when one party holds both chambers of the state legislature and the governorship — than Democrats have held since 1993. With the addition of Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan and Minnesota following the 2022 elections, more Americans now live in states entirely controlled by Democrats than by Republicans.

If there is one thing we know from history, it is that power can be fleeting. Just a few years ago, Democrats had full control over Virginia’s government, while now the state has a Republican governor and state House. Republicans who controlled Arizona for years now face a Democratic governor.

As these 17 states begin their new legislative sessions, they will face a myriad of competing priorities for which progressive issues to address first.

My message to state Democratic leaders is simple: Use your power to expand voting rights and protect democracy. Make 2023 the year that every Democratic-controlled state enacts new laws to strengthen free and fair elections and increase voter access. Enact bold new proposals to transform your election systems while also fixing small nagging problems confronting voters.
SNIP

=========
Here are the 5 laws Marc Elias lists -- lots of details about them are in the article:

1. Ban voter challenges.
2. Prevent long voting lines.
3. Limit the role of partisan poll watchers.
4. Strengthen the vote counting and election certification process.
5. Require courts to prioritize protecting voting rights.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

1. Voting should be quick, easy, convenient, and verifiable by the voter. GOP hates that.

[diva77]

2. Agree 100% with first statement.

Plus, you should be able to cast your vote in secret and have it counted in public.

In theory, election integrity is supposedly non-partisan.
But, of course, most of the lack of integrity skews rethuglican.

[Sucha NastyWoman]

3. Rule #3

I signed up to poll watch. Most of the voters thought I was a Republican watching for voter fraud, but actually, I signed up because I wanted to watch the watchers - the Republican poll watchers. But as it turned out, there were never any of them there at the same times I was there. But I was able to break up some Republican campaign shenanigans going on within the 100 foot marker by reporting it to the election judge.

So I did have a limited role, as it should be. One thing to note, at least in Texas, poll watchers are not supposed to interact with voters, campaigners, or poll workers. We are only supposed to speak with the Election Judge.

[diva77]

4. Wow - thank you doing that and for having the courage to take action to break up republican campaign

shenanigans! I hope you'll sign up again for the next election.

[MagickMuffin]

5. Unfortunately, in Texas our right to vote keeps being challenged by republicans

They are wanting a redo in Harris County because they didn’t like the outcome. They claim there wasn’t enough paper ballots, however, isn’t that part of the secretary of state’s job to ensure all counties have the correct ballots?

I believe the reason is to give themselves an advantage. Still make it difficult as hell to cast a ballot if you live in certain parts of the city and not give it much publicity.


Winning by deception!

[diva77]

10. If you find out more about this please let us know!

[Mad_Machine76]

14. While Republicans

eliminate polling locations and making it harder to vote in counties with too many people with the wrong color skin and/or party affiliation. Betcha they don't care about other counties running out of paper ballots.

[brer cat]

6. K&R

[calimary]

7. Good stuff, diva77!

I'm glad Marc Elias is on OUR side.

[diva77]

12. Me too!!!

[questionseverything]

8. K&r

[uponit7771]

9. K&R,

[UTUSN]

11. K&R

[FakeNoose]

13. I'm disappointed that there's nothing about mailed ballots in his treatise

[diva77]

16. The OP article mentions what he recommended in 2020 for mail-in voting

In 2020, I wrote about the need to reduce barriers to mail-in voting by reforming outdated signature verification processes, providing free return postage, allowing third-party ballot collection and extending the periods for seeking and returning mail-in ballots. I called these the four pillars to protect voting rights when voting by mail. Stacey Abrams called them the gold standard and they were widely endorsed by Democratic leaders.

======
not sure if this is what you were looking for...but good suggestion for him to add a 6th voting law to address the mail-in problems

[jmowreader]

15. Let me add a sixth

At least two candidates must be on the general election ballot for every office, except when a candidate ran unopposed in the primary election.

Idaho is a great reason why this is a good idea. Idaho, as you are undoubtedly well-aware, is a HEAVILY Republican state. There are exactly eighteen Democrats in the state legislature - eleven in the House, seven in the Senate. In a LOT of districts you can't get a Democrat to run for office. For instance, Idaho Senate District 1 - the people who inflicted Scott Herndon and Heather Scott on the rest of the state - hasn't had a Democrat on the ballot in years in either house. The Idaho GOP has closed its primary, so unless you're a registered Republican you are effectively disenfranchised in SD 1.

Now, if you go to Benewah County there's only going to be one candidate for Coroner every year because only one person ever wants the job. (For many, many years the Coroner was Ron Hodge, the only funeral director in town. Before that, the five doctors in town passed the job around between themselves.) But in races where there was opposition in the primary, they have the obligation to pass two names onto the General ballot and allow the entire community to pick who they want.

If you go to the next state on the left, Washington does this very thing: the top two vote-getters in the primary, regardless of party affiliation, advance to the general election. There are a LOT of districts in the middle of the state that have two Republicans on the general election ballot in every race.

[diva77]

17. I like this idea

although it will take some moolah to implement it -- seems to get more and more expensive every election cycle to run candidates.

[jmowreader]

18. If they could amend the Constitution for this...

…we could solve a lot of problems by setting the election to be a week starting July 5th. The 4th is Patriotic Fervor Day so people are already pumped up, and by the time the election has come in November they’re down to calling each other bad names.