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Kentucky Activists Step In to Deliver on the Promise of Voting Rights Restoration

Alex Burness

October 12, 2023 |

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Response Location: United States, Kentucky

After Kentucky reinstated voting rights for people convicted of nonviolent crimes who have finished their sentence, a coalition of activists and nonprofit organizations started using public records, social media, door-to-door canvassing, and other outreach methods to inform formerly incarcerated people of their rights. The effort has helped register more than 89,000 people since 2019, though advocates say the state itself could be doing much more to reach newly-enfranchised voters.

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Refugee Organizing Helps Spur Noncitizen Voting in Vermont Cities

Piper French

September 28, 2023 |

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Response Location: United States, Vermont

Since 2018, three Vermont cities have passed measures allowing noncitizen voters to participate in municipal elections. This gives them the opportunity to weigh in on matters that affect all local residents regardless of their immigration status, from school budgets to road projects.

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‘We Have a Right to Put It on the Ballot': How Organizers Are Defending Direct Democracy

Daniel Nichanian

August 16, 2023 |

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Response Location: United States, Ohio

Organizations in politically divided states like Arkansas, Idaho and Ohio are hard at work to protect direct democracy through community organizing and education. These groups have rallied to pass measures like minimum wage increases, medical marijuana and have even organized voters to fail ballot measures like Ohio’s recent Issue 1.

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Oregon Wants to Register Medicaid Recipients to Vote. Will Biden Officials Allow It?

Alex Burness

July 11, 2023 |

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Response Location: United States, Oregon

Oregon was the first state to implement automatic voter registration, which allows government agencies such as the DMV to share residents’ information with election officials. Roughly 94 percent of eligible residents are now registered to vote, and the state hopes to expand its approach to Medicaid recipients, but federal regulations may complicate that process.

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Campaign Finance Reformers Hope to Convert Their First State to Democracy Vouchers

Spenser Mestel

February 02, 2023 |

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Response Location: United States, Seattle, Washington

Seattle's democracy voucher program allows residents to donate to political candidates of their choice using public funding, which has greatly diversified local races and made them more competitive. Now, governments in New Hampshire and Minnesota are considering implementing statewide versions of the program.

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Efforts to Expand Ballot Access in Washington State Jails Face Local Pushback

Khawla Nakua

January 23, 2023 |

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Response Location: United States, Washington

Washington lawmakers allocated $2.5 million in grant funding to help jails improve voting access for people incarcerated there, which resulted in a big spike in ballots cast in one facility that participated. But only five counties applied for the grant program, and jail officials interested in participating have faced opposition from political representatives in some areas.

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To Boost Turnout, Some Cities Just Synced Up Their Local Elections With National Cycles

Alex Burness

November 22, 2022 |

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Response Location: United States, Ann Arbor, Michigan

To boost turnout in local elections that often see low participation, cities such as Berkeley, Calif. and Ann Arbor, Mich. have shifted their election cycles to match up with higher-profile presidential contests. Researchers found that moving municipal elections to sync up with presidential elections boosts turnout by an average of 29 percent, and at least 11 communities approved similar measures this year to make the switch to even-year elections.

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In North Carolina, a Rush to “Restore Hope in the Vote” in People with Felony Convictions

Kelan Lyons

November 04, 2022 |

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Response Location: United States, New Bern, North Carolina

A Superior Court ruling in North Carolina restored voting rights to people with felony convictions who are no longer in prison, giving up to 56,000 residents the opportunity to return to the ballot box. Organizations participating in the "Unlock Our Vote" movement are working to connect with and register disenfranchised voters, and people who have been re-enfranchised say reclaiming their rights has given them new hope that they can help effect change.

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Nevada Voters Consider Bringing Ranked Choice Elections to a Swing State

Spenser Mestel

September 27, 2022 |

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Response Location: United States, Alaska

Alaska recently held its first high-profile election using ranked-choice voting, which allows voters to select a second- and third-choice candidate to transfer their vote to if their first-choice candidate doesn't get enough votes to advance. Democrat Mary Peltola was elected in an upset over Republican Sarah Palin after receiving a higher percentage of second-choice votes transferred from the third candidate in the race, and this fall, a number of other states, including Nevada, will consider whether to implement ranked-choice voting.

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In the Netherlands, Safe Drug Consumption Sites Are Saving Lives. The U.S. Is Resisting.

Jaisal Noor

September 14, 2022 |

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Response Location: Netherlands, Amsterdam

In the Netherlands, safe consumption sites provide a clean, supervised space for drug users to go without worrying about legal ramifications. The sites not only help prevent overdoses, with zero overdose deaths reported at safe consumption sites, but also connect patrons with harm-reduction information, alternatives such as methadone, supportive housing, mental health treatment, and other social services.

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