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The State of Reform
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Download Unite America's free report analyzing the impact of four key political reforms.
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Campaign Finance
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More than two dozen legislators have already signed on to the donor disclosure measure.

In wake of scandal, bipartisan push in Ohio for money-in-politics transparency

Days after the speaker of the Ohio House was charged with racketeering, colleagues from both parties are lining up to bolster the state's donor disclosure laws.

By Thursday, 22 majority Republicans and five Democrats in the General Assembly had signed on to a measure requiring political advocacy groups to begin naming the original sources of their funds and file disclosure reports with the state.

The bill's prospects are not certain. Still, it's an unusual level of bipartisan collaboration — at either the state or federal level, and especially in an election year — to bolster regulation of campaign finances in hope of controlling the secretive influence of special interests over campaigns and then governing. Good governance groups see mandating this sort of sunshine as essential to the running of a clean democracy.

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Congress
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Younger House members a bit more bipartisan, research decides

Younger House members are more likely to work across the aisle than their older colleagues, a new study shows.

Bipartisanship is extraordinarily hard to come by on Capitol Hill, one of the main reasons why the legislative branch has devolved into near-total dysfunction and further hobbled the regular operations of democracy. The report provides a glimmer of hope the next generation of lawmaker leaders may be willing to change that.

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Voting
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A poll found more than three-quarters of people under 35 are motivated to vote in this year's election.

Poll: Young people want to vote by mail, but don't know how to do it

Young people are more inclined than ever to vote by mail in this year's election, but a new poll shows a majority of them lack the resources and knowledge to do so.

In light of the coronavirus pandemic, half the states have already adjusted their general election plans to emphasize mail-in voting or otherwise make casting ballots easier and safer. But a poll, released last week by the progressive youth voter engagement group NextGen America, indicates a significant lack of familiarity with the absentee voting process among voters younger than 35.

The survey is the latest indication that an optimistic expectation which surfaces every four years — the leaders of tomorrow are finally going to turn out in great numbers and cast the decisive votes for president — may be dashed once again.

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