District of Columbia | September 8, 2021
New U.S. guidelines ban network-connected voting systems, acknowledging vulnerability to attack . . .
District of Columbia | September 8, 2021
After years of warnings about state-sponsored hackers and the contentious end of the 2020 election, the federal commission that sets the standards for American voting machines has made a major change rather quietly: Going forward, vote systems cannot be connected to any digital networks, and wireless technology must be disabled too. The Election Assistance Commission’s Voluntary Voter System Guidelines 2.0 were released earlier this year without much fanfare and nominal media coverage, even though they were the first major revisions since 2015 and the first complete overhaul since VVSG 1.0 was issued 16 years ago…. (Excerpts from Just the News)
District of Columbia | August 25, 2021
House passes H.R. 4 election takeover bill restoring DOJ preclearance authority over all state and local election laws, including redistricting and absentee ballots
District of Columbia | August 25, 2021
The House of Representatives on Aug. 24 passed H.R. 4, the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, by a vote of 219 to 212, legislation that would give preclearance authority over any change to state or municipal election laws, including redistricting and absentee ballots, to the U.S. Attorney General or alternately, to the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia.
According to Section 6 of the bill: “Each State and each political subdivision shall identify any newly enacted or adopted law, regulation, or policy that includes a voting qualification or prerequisite to voting, or a standard, practice, or procedure with respect to voting… and… ensure that no such covered practice is implemented unless or until the State or political subdivision, as the case may be, complies with subsection (c),” which requires preclearance either via the Attorney General, or alternately, the D.C. District Court…. (Excerpts from the Daily Torch)
District of Columbia | August 24, 2021
Exclusive: Report confirms 2020 abuses and RNC deploys ‘year-round’ election integrity unit
District of Columbia | August 24, 2021
“The pandemic brought chaos and comprehensive changes to voting processes beginning in the spring primaries and lasting through the post-election process,” said the 23-page report from the RNC’s Committee on Election Integrity, created by party Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel.
“Democrats, including some public officials, used the pandemic as a pretense to achieve long-sought policy goals, such as expanded mail voting and the elimination of key safeguards, specifically for absentee voting, such as witness and ID requirements,” added the report provided to Secrets.
It was focused on the voting process and key areas in which state voting laws were abandoned, not on county-by-county claims of voting fraud.
McDaniel, who has weathered criticisms over the election, immediately set up a new election integrity unit that will challenge future voting schemes and advise states on election reform.
She told us, “The RNC established an election integrity committee to examine how Democrats attack election integrity — and more importantly, to lay out a blueprint for protecting our elections from the far-left.”
McDaniel applauded the panel’s leaders, Chairman Joe Gruters and Co-Chairwoman Ashley MacLeay, and said, “Republicans believe in making it easier to vote and harder to cheat, and we’re building a historic election integrity operation to do just that.”.. (Excerpts from the Washington Examiner)
District of Columbia | August 23, 2021
Poll finds growing support for voter ID requirements
District of Columbia | August 23, 2021
A large majority of voters support laws requiring photo identification, according to a new poll from an election integrity group conducted as Democrats push for sweeping elections reforms.
A poll released this week from the Honest Elections Project found 81 percent of voters surveyed support requiring every voter to show a photo ID to cast a ballot.
The poll found support for voter ID laws rose by 4 percentage points from March to July, and it increased by 13 percentage points among Black voters surveyed.
While some Democrats have raised concerns that voter ID requirements will disenfranchise low-income voters who may not have a photo ID, 74 percent of those surveyed for the poll said they support providing free identification to voters who need one rather than doing away with ID requirements.
The poll was conducted by the Honest Elections Project, a nonpartisan group led by Jason Snead, who previously worked at the conservative Heritage Foundation. It surveyed 1,200 registered voters nationwide from July 8 to 17, and it has a margin of error of 3 percentage points…. (Excerpts from The Hill)
District of Columbia, West Virginia | June 7, 2021
Manchin to Vote Against Bill Federalizing Elections, Dealing Major Blow to Democrats
District of Columbia, West Virginia | June 7, 2021
Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.V., declared Sunday he will oppose his party’s legislation to federalize how elections are conducted, dealing a severe blow to Democratic passage in the evenly divided Senate.
The For The People Act would among other things ban voter ID requirements, mandate mail-in voting options and begin registering voters at age 16. It has faced uniform Republican opposition.
In an op-ed published in the Charleston Gazette-Mail, Manchin declared the bill as too partisan and divisive
He also revealed he would not support eliminating the filibuster that requires 60 votes to consider most pieces of legislation in the Senate. On that point, he is joining a second Democrat, Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona.
“I believe that partisan voting legislation will destroy the already weakening binds of our democracy, and for that reason, I will vote against the For The People Act,” Manchin wrote.
He added he would fight to “seek bipartisan compromise no matter how difficult and to develop the political bonds that end divisions and help unite the country we love.”..
(Excerpts from the Virginia Star)
Arizona, District of Columbia | April 28, 2021
Conservatives Call for Election Integrity in Arizona
Arizona, District of Columbia | April 28, 2021
Washington — A coalition of conservative groups, led by Heritage Action and the Arizona Free Enterprise Club, today issued a statement calling for the Arizona Senate to quickly pass SB1485:
SB1485 is a common-sense, effective bill that will improve Arizona’s early vote-by-mail system, save taxpayer dollars, and safeguard against potential fraud. While some have opposed the bill by arguing the provisions to clean up the early voting list will not take effect until 2026, that is simply not the case. SB1485 will take effect before the next presidential election in Arizona, and will remove voters from the early voting list who failed to vote in the 2022 and 2020 election cycles. Anyone who says otherwise has not read the bill or is not being truthful.
Additionally, while more work is needed in Arizona and across the country to strengthen our election systems and promote voter confidence, that work should build — not detract — from the momentum of passing SB1485 immediately. Delaying this important legislation over political posturing would ignore the realities of the legislative process and the thousands of Arizonans who have supported it…
(Excerpts from The Heritage Foundation)