News
U.S. Chamber foundation seeks business support for civic ed
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation has a message for corporations: The country is in trouble, so get off your butt.
The foundation made its pitch to the business community in a newly published white paper chronicling the sorry state of civics education, the role that corporations can play in healing a divided country and why it should all matter to businesses.
The health of civics education is "quite bleak," foundation President Carolyn Cawley said in an introduction to the paper, which she called "the first step in our efforts to make the business case for civics."
With the support and buy-in of the private sector, the foundation believes, the country stands a better chance at improving civic education and engagement, which in turn could heal the in-fighting, distrust and misinformation undermining the health of the country and well-being of corporate America.
Election equipment vendors should face more security oversight, report argues
Efforts to fend off election hackers in 2020 and beyond have revolved around protecting ballot equipment and the databases of registered voters. Little attention has been focused on the vendors and their employees.
But the nonpartisan Brennan Center for Justice is proposing that the vendors who make election equipment and related systems be subjected to heightened oversight and vetting, much like defense contractors or others involved in national security.
"There is almost no federal regulation of the vendors that design and maintain the systems that allow us to determine who can vote, how they vote, or how their votes are counted and reported," according to a new report from the nonpartisan policy institute.
Priorities USA files new lawsuit over ballot access in Michigan
A Democratic advocacy group has filed a lawsuit challenging Michigan laws that ban both rides to the poll for many voters and organized absentee ballot application drives.
The lawsuit was filed in federal court Tuesday by the super PAC Priorities USA, against Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, also a Democrat.
It is the latest in a series of lawsuits filed in recent weeks by Democratic groups challenging laws that they believe make it more difficult for people to vote. One of the laws the new suit challenges makes it a misdemeanor to hire a vehicle to transport voters to the polls unless the voters are not able to walk.
The second law makes it a crime to organize efforts to assist voters in submitting applications for absentee ballots.
Debate
New York City shows us how to rank civility over extremism
"Ranked-choice voting is on the rise across the country because it offers hope," argues Election Reformers Network leader Kevin Johnson.
Community
2019 Champions of Democracy
Monday, Nov. 18, FairVote is hosting an awards ceremony in Washington where you'll have the opportunity to celebrate its 2019 successes and learn more about their reforms, including ranked-choice voting.
Wednesday's Word of the Week:
Express advocacy: Ads that explicitly encourage casting a vote for or against a candidate.