US Vote Blog

The Pew Charitable Trusts published an Election Performance Index (EPI) to include data from the 2012 General Election. The EPI assesses state election administration performance based on 17 indicators.

Pew’s 2012 EPI shows improvement for some indicators. However, military and overseas voters continue to face challenges. Based on the two indicators used to assess the military and overseas voting process, 31.4% of military and overseas ballots transmitted to voters in 2012 were not returned, and 40.4% of military and overseas ballots were rejected in 2012 because they were received by election officials after the deadline for counting.

As we come to the conclusion of Women’s History Month, we celebrate the contributions of women to all facets of our society. However, inequality still remains, particularly gender parity in elected office.

Our friends at FairVote have released The State of Women’s Representation 2013-2014...

We are already thinking about the 2026 midterm election season! It will begin with the primaries and then the general election in November. Be read to ask yourself these questions: Are you registered? Will you cast your vote? Did you know that midterms can be as crucial as presidential elections and that both are considered “general elections”?

A great many Americans who answered ‘yes’ to the first question have all too often answered ‘maybe’ to the second question. The third and fourth will depend a lot on whether a civics class was in your school curriculum. Historically, it has taken the sheer perceived importance of a presidential race (as the most powerful person in the world) to drive voters to the polls.

Far too many Americans downplay the impact of midterm elections. The ability to shape Congress influences legislation as well as the president’s ability to enact the administration’s vision and programs.

Many people are aware that Oregon is one of three states that implements all-mail voting. Washington followed in 2011 and Colorado makes the switch after that. However, what most people do not know is that San Diego was the pioneer in vote-by-mail elections. “As a charter city, San Diego has more...

Representative Susan Davis (D-CA), a featured keynote speaker at OVF and US Vote’s 2014 Eighth Annual Voting and Elections Summit, recently filed a bill in Congress aimed at lessening restrictions on absentee voting. The bill would mandate no-excuse absentee voting in all federal elections. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, 27 states and the District of Columbia allow this provision, while 20 states only accept absentee ballots if detailed excuses are submitted.

Three states - Washington, Oregon, and Colorado - allow for all-mail voting. Representative Davis argues that invasive excuse requirements do not prevent fraud. Rather, she states “They are really just getting in the way. They have a real chilling effect.”

Co-chairs Bob Bauer and Ben Ginsberg, of the Presidential Commission on Election Administration, will speak at this week’s Eighth Annual Voting and Elections Summit 2014. The Commission’s report, released last week, sets forth a succinct and pertinent set of findings and recommendations for improving the voting process and all that’s behind it.

Information and research from Overseas Vote Foundation on overseas and military voting is featured in the report on page 61, highlighting the continued non-uniformity of services for overseas and military voters across state websites.