American Democracy Minute Radio Report for August 18, 2023

Under the Cloak of “Election Integrity,” North Carolina Legislature Overhauls Election System; Override of Governor’s Expected Veto Likely
The North Carolina legislature approved a so-called “election integrity” bill late Wednesday, making it harder to vote by mail, employing provisional ballots for election day registrants, implementing new polling place observer rules, and allowing voters to challenge the mail ballots of other voters.   

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Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
Democracy Docket - North Carolina Republicans Introduce Election Bill Influenced by GOP Operatives
WRAL - Sweeping election law changes moving forward again in NC legislature, ahead of 2024 elections
WRAL - Local election officials say proposed NC election changes would be 'disruptive'
North Carolina Legislature - Final version of SB 747
WGHP - Few amendments, many questions: North Carolina’s expanded voting law headed for Gov. Roy Cooper’s desk

Groups Taking Action:
North Carolina Black Alliance, Democracy North Carolina, North Carolina Voter, ACLU North Carolina

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#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #NCPolitics #VoterSuppression #FreedomtoVote

American Democracy Minute Radio Report for August 17, 2023

Developments in the Fight for Fair Voting District Maps in Alabama, Florida and Wisconsin
While we’ve been reading indictments, there have been three developments in the last week which may impact gerrymandered Congressional maps in Alabama, Florida and Wisconsin.  

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
NPR - Alabama lost a voting rights case at the Supreme Court. It's still trying to win
Associated Press - Federal judges question Alabama’s new congressional map, lack of 2nd majority-Black district
Democracy Docket - New Agreement Renews Potential for Black-Performing Florida Congressional District
WCJB - North Florida congressional district challenge to be expedited to Supreme Court
Insider - A North Florida congressional district that was held by a Black Democrat before it was dismantled by Ron DeSantis could be restored in 2024 under a new agreement
Wisconsin State Journal - Liberal Janet Protasiewicz vows fairness as Wisconsin Supreme Court term begins
Wisconsin Examiner - Lawsuit against legislative maps filed at Wisconsin Supreme Court
Wisconsin Examiner - Vos says Republicans may consider impeaching Protasiewicz over redistricting comments

Groups Taking Action:
NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Campaign Legal Center, Black Voters Matter, Equal Ground, Florida Rising,  League of Women Voters of Florida, Fair Maps Wisconsin Coalition, Common Cause WI, League of Women Voters WI

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#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #FairMaps #WisconsinPolitics #AllenvMilligan #FloridaPolitics

Georgia Indictment of Trump & Allies Includes Ties to Breach of Voting Machines in Coffee County, GA

In a follow up to our past reports on Coffee County, GA, Monday’s RICO indictment of former President Donald Trump includes evidence of alleged COORDINATION of voting machine tampering by Trump’s legal team, and indictments of lead actors involved in the alleged access to, and tampering with the county’s ballot tabulation machines.

Our podcasting host recently made changes which stops us from including our entire script as part of the podcast content.  To view the whole script, please go to our website and find today's report.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
Associated Press - Full Searchable Indictment from the Fulton County Superior Court
Associated Press - Video shows ‘unauthorized access’ to Ga. election equipment
Reuters - (2022) Michigan widens probe into voting system breaches by Trump allies
CNN - Text messages reveal Trump operatives considered using breached voting data to decertify Georgia’s Senate runoff in 2021
CNN - Exclusive: Georgia prosecutors have messages showing Trump’s team is behind voting system breach

Sullivan|Strickler - Management Team
The Guardian -  Trump allies face potential charges in Georgia over voting machine breaches
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#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #TrumpIndictment #GeorgiaIndictment

Ohio’s Politician-Led Redistricting Commission Failed.  Citizens Are Proposing a Citizen-Led Commission Instead.

With 70% of the vote in 2018, Ohio voters passed a constitutional amendment prohibiting partisan gerrymandering.  The state’s redistricting commission and legislature ignored it, and gerrymandered the voting district maps anyway.  Citizens are now trying to fix what the politicians won’t.

Our podcasting host recently made changes which stops us from including our entire script as part of the podcast content.  To view the whole script, please go to our website and find today's report.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
Ohio Capital Journal - (2022) Public awaits more redistricting work, but new law gives court little leeway to force it
Ohio Capital Journal - (2022)  Discussions underway to propose new redistricting reform to Ohio voters
WOSU - Groups gathering signatures to get citizen-led statewide redistricting commission on the 2024 ballot
Ohio Redistricting Commission - What the Commission Does
Ohio Redistricting Commission - Public Comments
Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission - FAQ Page
California Independent Redistricting Commission - FAQ Page
BallotPedia - States with Redistricting Commissions

Groups Taking Action:

Common Cause Ohio, League of Women Voters OH, Fair Districts Ohio, Indivisible Central Ohio
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DC Democrats Attempt to Block Citizen Initiative Proposing Ranked Choice Voting and Semi-Open Primaries in City Elections
Democrats in the District of Columbia have sued the DC Elections Board to prevent a citizen ballot initiative proposing ranked choice voting and semi-open primaries, claiming it would violate the city charter, and confuse Black and Hispanic voters.  Many major party leaders perceive open primaries as an existential threat to power, despite its popularity with voters.

**Correction in today's audio report**  The DC Elections Board approved the ballot measure to move forward in JULY, not June, as stated.  Sorry for the error! 

Our podcasting host recently made changes which stops us from including our entire script as part of the podcast content.  To view the whole script, please go to our website and find today's report.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
Make All Votes Count DC - Text of “Make All Votes Count Act of 2024”
DCist - D.C. Democratic Party Sues To Keep Ranked Choice Voting And Open Primaries Off The Ballot
New York City Campaign Finance Board - (2022)  Report Highlights Ranked Choice Voting in 2021 Elections
Unite America - (2022) Two new reports on Ranked Choice Voting in NYC provide hope amidst a dismal primary season
The Hill - (Opinion) Could election reform in DC help conservatives embrace it nationwide?

Groups Taking Action:
Make All Votes Count DC, More Voice DC, Rank the Vote, Open Primaries, Fair Vote Action

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#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #RCV #OpenPrimaries

Should Commodities Traders Be Able to Gamble on Who Wins Control Congress? 
Should investors be able to bet on who wins the control of Congress?  A commodities trading company wants to sell “futures” contracts based on the outcome of elections.

Our podcasting host recently made changes which stops us from including our entire script as part of the podcast content.  To view the whole script, please go to our website and find today's report.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
Commodity Futures Trading Commission - CFTC Announces Review of Kalshi Congressional Control Contracts and Public Comment Period  (The official public comment period ended in July, though you can still write the CFTC with your comments
Commodity Futures Trading Commission - Comments form page
KalshiEX LLC - Letter to CFTC
CFTC -  Questions for Public Comment
Senate Oversight Committee for CFTC - Senate Committee for Agriculture, Nutrition & Forestry
The Hill - (Opinion by DENNIS M. KELLEHER) The stakes are far too high to allow gambling on U.S. elections

Groups Taking Action:
Better Markets, Public Citizen

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#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #ProtectElections #ProtectPollWorkers

Ohio Voters Defeat Republican Effort to Raise Citizen Ballot Initiative Passage to 60% in Victory for Direct Democracy
With an unofficial 57% to 43% margin, Ohio voters soundly defeated the effort by the Republican-majority legislature to raise the threshold for passage of citizen ballot initiatives.  Issue one would have also required minimum numbers of qualifying signatures in 88 counties rather than the current 44.

Our podcasting host recently made changes which stops us from including our entire script as part of the podcast content.  To view the whole script, please go to our website and find today's report.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
Politico - (2022) Republicans look to restrict ballot measures following a string of progressive wins
Ohio Secretary of State - Aug. 8 Special Election Results on Issue 1
Associated Press - Voters in Ohio reject GOP-backed proposal that would have made it tougher to protect abortion rights
CNBC - Ohio voters reject GOP effort to cripple abortion rights amendment
BallotPedia - 2022 abortion-related ballot measures
BallotPedia - Ohio Right to Make Reproductive Decisions Including Abortion Initiative (2023)

Groups Taking Action:
One Person One Vote, Ohio Voter Rights Coalition, Ohio Citizen Action, Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights, All Voting is Local

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Democracy  #DemocracyNews #DirectDemocracy #OnePersonOneVote

Oregon Expands Automatic Voter Registration, Protects Voters Who Move In-State From Losing Eligibility, and Seeks Funding for Dropbox Security
Three bills signed by Oregon’s governor August 4th expand Automatic Voter Registration, protect voters who move within the state from losing eligibility, and allow the state to seek federal funding for dropbox security.

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Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
Voting Rights Lab's "The Markup" - August 7, 2023
Oregon Legislature - Final version of HB 2107
Oregon Legislature - Final version of SB 166
Oregon Legislature - Final version of HB 1094
Bolts - Oregon Wants to Register Medicaid Recipients to Vote. Will Biden Officials Allow It?
Democracy Docket - Former Oregon Gov. Kate Brown:  Oregon’s Universal Mail-In Voting Transformed Civic Participation. Here’s How
Oregon Secretary of State - Voting in Oregon

Groups Taking Action:
Vote at Home Institute,  Next Up Oregon, Coalition of Communities of Color, Disability Rights Oregon,

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#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #VoteatHome #OregonPolitics #VotingRights #FreedomtoVote

Tuesday’s Ohio Special Election Attempts to Take Away Simple Majority Rulefor Ballot Initiatives.  Now the Legislature is After Ranked Choice Voting. 

The Ohio special election on Issue 1, the legislature’s attempt to raise the threshold to pass a citizen ballot initiative to 60%, is Tuesday, Aug. 8th.  Now, in an effort to wrest even more power from its citizenry, an Ohio legislator has introduced a bill going after ranked choice voting.

Our podcasting host recently made changes which stops us from including our entire script as part of the podcast content.  To view the whole script, please go to our website and find today's report.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
FiveThirtyEight - Everything You Need To Know About The Ohio Ballot Measure That Could Block Abortion Rights
Ohio Legislature - SB 137 Prohibiting the Use of Ranked Choice Voting
Statehouse News Bureau - Bill seeks to punish Ohio communities that pass ranked choice voting
The Athens Register/Associated Press - Ranked choice voting works in some other states. In Ohio, it’s fodder for a publicity stunt
Republican National Committee - RESOLUTION TO OFFICIALLY OPPOSE RANKED CHOICE VOTING ACROSS THE COUNTRY

How to Vote in Ohio's Aug. 8th Special Election
Ohio Secretary of State – Voting Dates & Times for Aug. 8th Special Election
WOSU – Ohio voter guide: What to know about the August special election
Ohio Secretary of State – Find My Polling Place Tool

Groups Taking Action:
One Person One Vote, Ohio Voter Rights Coalition, Ohio Citizen Action, Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights, All Voting is Local, Rank the Vote Ohio

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#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #RCV #OnePersonOneVote

Dismissed: The Recent Arizona Election Denier Court Cases Which Crashed and Burned
Notable court cases brought by Arizona election deniers during and after the 2022 midterms have had decisions in the last few weeks.  It didn’t go well for the election deniers.

Our podcasting host recently made changes which stops us from including our entire script as part of the podcast content.  To view the whole script, please go to our website and find today's report.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
Fox 10 Phoenix - Sanctions sought for Kari Lake following latest 2022 election lawsuit defeat: Here's what you should know
KJZZ - Judge sanctions legal team for Kari Lake and Mark Finchem
KJZZ - Attorneys for Kari Lake and Mark Finchem fined more than $120,000 by federal judge
SUPERIOR COURT OF ARIZONA MARICOPA COUNTY - KARI LAKE v.  KATIE HOBBS, et al.
Arizona Mirror - Kari Lake asks Supreme Court to overturn her loss, let her skip the appeals process
Arizona Mirror - Richer sues Lake for defamation
12 News Phoeinix - Judge dismisses Mark Finchem's lawsuit challenging election results
Arizona's Law Blog - Mark Finchem DROPS His Election Contest Appeal; Still Appealing Sanctions, Though

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#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #ArizonaPolitics #ElectionDeniers