US Vote Blog

Recent Content

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The OpEd, Overseas and Military Voting Laws Demonstrate that National Norms are Possible, by U.S. Vote Foundation's President and CEO as featured in Democracy Fund's electionline news on May 6, 2021, aims to emphasize that Congress has successfully passed federal voting legislation in the past, and...

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Our new OpEd in The Fulcrum

From our perspective at U.S. Vote Foundation (US Vote), the build up to the election and the incredible participation levels across all states. Now, the aftermath of this successful 2020 election is a barrage of laws across many states.

Not all of them are bad, there are some that expand on the success of the recent general election. But some of these voting laws are designed to crush the level of engagement we just witnessed.

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Scrabbles tiles spelling BLOCKCHAIN

Voters are understandably concerned about election security. News reports of possible election interference by foreign powers, of unauthorized voting, of voter disenfranchisement, and of technological failures call into question the integrity of elections worldwide. This article examines the suggestions that “voting over the Internet” or “voting on the blockchain” would increase election security, and finds such claims to be wanting and misleading.

While current election systems are far from perfect, Internet- and blockchain-based voting would greatly increase the risk of undetectable, nation-scale election failures.

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I Voted button with usvotefoundation.org

Every vote counts in any election, and that maxim is on full display in the upcoming January 5, 2021 Georgia runoff election. With two Senate seats up for grabs, and the margins in the General Election so small that the runoffs could go for either candidate, making sure every citizen is a voter –...

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Two men in blue shirts with I Voted stickers

As the country gears up for a double runoff Senate election in Georgia, here’s a quick look at what could be one of the major deciding factors in the January 5 runoff. That factor is the youth vote, that cohort of 18-29 year-olds that arguably tipped the scales in Georgia during the 2020...

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Scales of justice

One of the unfortunate narratives coming out of this complex election year has been a raft of accusations about the integrity of the election process. The concerns have spanned a gamut of issues: from fears of foreign interference and the casting of fraudulent ballots to concerns about the accuracy...

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As the antidote to doomscrolling and handwringing, we’d like to offer a little hope and a little optimism about what lies ahead: Our democracy is strong.

Look at the voter turnout reports. As of this writing we were closing in on exceeding the total 2016 vote count six days before Election Day, and by the time you read this we’ll probably have topped that total. Which means, of course, that we will have a record turnout.

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Down Ballot Voting in Local Elections

While record numbers of voters are planning to cast a ballot this November – or are doing so right now, depending on the availability of early voting and mail-in balloting in your state – a troubling question is starting to emerge: will these voters, many of them first time voters, vote for more...

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Street sign with many labels

Voting should be simple. It should be easy and efficient. It should allow any eligible citizen to claim their right to vote without difficulty.

It is not. Voting in the US is complicated, especially due to state-by-state differences that make it hard to participate in the most basic democratic...