Expanding Voter Access
“The League of Women Voters, the American Association of Retired People and several other groups are opposing the bills because many eligible voters don't have the type of identification required and could have difficulty getting it.”
“United States Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Bill Nelson (D-FL) each released the following statements today after the U.S. Department of Justice filed papers in court challenging portions of Florida’s new voting law.”
“A broad-based coalition of advocacy organizations, spearheaded by Tennessee Citizen Action, has mobilized to repeal Tennessee’s photo ID law and to increase voting-rights awareness. ... In the meantime, today, ACLU-TN is staffing a toll-free hotline for voters who encounter problems at the poll.”
A Dane County judge ruled Monday that the Wisconsin League of Women Voters' lawsuit challenging the state voter ID law can proceed since the League is a proper party to bring the lawsuit and Wisconsin Governor Walker is a proper defendant.
“On Friday, the United States Department of Justice announced it will seek a trial regarding Florida’s controversial elections law overhaul, passed last year by the state Legislature. ... A court in Tallahassee is also currently considering a challenge to the law by the League of Women Voters of Florida, Rock the Vote, Florida PIRG, and others.”
“The skirmishing in Harrisburg over the last year on the bill that would require state-issued photo ID for practically all PA voters turns into a pitched battle on Monday with a committee vote scheduled and a series of actions by an opposition coalition designed to block final passage at the 11th hour.”
“‘If we can't get the money out, we should at least know who's spending the money,’ Elisabeth MacNamara, the president of the League of Women Voters, told the Alley.”
“Several normally tepid procedural rulings have sparked a flurry of divided opinions as the Florida Supreme Court prepares to hear oral arguments over redistricting maps ... ”
Florida Restricts Independent Voter Registration Drives
“... The state has imposed new rules restricting third-party voter registration drives, which are so onerous that Rock the Vote, the League of Women Voters and the Florida Public Interest Research Group Education Fund have had to suspend their volunteer-led programs.”
“Last year, the Florida legislature passed a bill enacting requirements for groups conducting voter registration drives so onerous that even the League of Women Voters were forced to pull out of the state. Sensible individuals would see this episode as a cautionary tale. South Carolina legislators view it instead as a how-to guide.”